At the Beginning With You
by Genevieve Kelly
Summary: This is a direct sequel to my other Once Upon a Time fiction, Killian's Inferno. Emma and Killian have left Storybrooke on the Jolly Roger for their honeymoon, looking for an adventure on the high seas as well as within another realm. Soon they find themselves in a fight for survival. This story title comes from a song sung by Richard Marx and Donna Lewis from the movie, Anastasia.
1. Chapter 1

At the Beginning With You

Chapter One

Emma and Killian walked down to the dock hand in hand where the Jolly Roger was prepped and ready for them to sail off on their first adventure as husband and wife. Charming, Snow, and Henry all walked down behind them, then as Hook stepped onboard, Emma turned back to her family to say her goodbyes while they swept her into a big hug. The embrace shouldn't have surprised her anymore, as it happened so often, but for some reason, a hug like this from them always did. And for some reason, it always made her feel a little uneasy because it made her worry that something bad was about to happen.

"Emma, are you okay?" her mother asked worryingly upon seeing the nervousness in her eyes. "What's wrong? You're finally about to go off on your honeymoon with the man you love. What can possibly be bothering you right now?"

"If I recall, Emma isn't the only one who's felt uneasy by something on her honeymoon," David answered mockingly as he quickly looked over at his own wife.

She slapped him as they both laughed, while Emma responded nervously, "I don't know what's wrong exactly. It's just… What if something happens here while we're gone? What if more trouble comes to Storybrooke and you guys need the Savior to defeat it? I could be condemning you all to another curse or something else terrible."

Mary Margaret smiled as she gently put her hand over her daughter's cheek and replied, "You can't let your fear stop you from being happy, Emma. It's been six months since you were married."

"Yes, and in those six months, we've run into all kinds of trouble," the blonde answered with frustration. "Dragons, demons, trolls… Trouble keeps finding us."

"Maybe so, but we've always prevailed because good will always find a way to defeat evil," David continued. "You reminded us of that when you broke the curse on us the first time. We can take care of ourselves for the next few weeks. Go and have the honeymoon you both deserve. Maybe you'll even begin the first step into making us another grandchild."

Emma stepped back as she responded, "Whoa there, take it easy. We just got married and I think I'd like to enjoy our time together for a little while first before anything like that happens."

Hook stepped down from his ship, having overheard the last half of their conversation, as he replied, "I couldn't agree with Swan more. Are you ready to go, love?"

"Yeah, I think so," she answered as she walked over to stand within his arms while they looked back at the family they were now both a part of. "If anything happens, if trouble comes and you need us to come back, find a way to send us word; a bird or a spell of some kind, and we'll come home as soon as we can."

"We will, if you promise us that you'll do the same," Henry responded quickly as he reached out to hug his mom and then shook Hook's hand before they left. "If you run into trouble yourself I mean. Be careful out there, but more importantly, have fun."

The Savior smiled as she replied, "Thanks, kid. We will. I love you, all of you."

Mary Margaret nodded and then stated, "We love you two as well."

Once underway upon the open sea…

"You seem a bit uncertain about our decision to leave, Swan," Hook spoke up as he walked up from behind the woman he loved once he made sure the Jolly Roger was well in control before leaving the wheel. "Are you sure this is really what you want?"

"We've been married for six months and yet you're still calling me by my old name," Emma answered, seeming to ignore his concern.

He nodded, then responded, "Aye. Swan suits you better than Jones ever could, or Hook. I thought that I made that clear before we were married. As happy as I am that you would happily take on my name, I don't believe Emma Jones is right for such a beautiful lady, especially the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming. You didn't answer my question. Shall I turn back?"

She shook her head as she leaned in close to kiss him, then replied, "I promise you, Killian, there's no place that I would rather be at than right here, sailing across the ocean with you on our own adventure. I'm just worried is all, worried that Storybrooke will fall under attack while we're gone. Nevertheless, we're going. I'm sure I'm just being paranoid, like always. I suppose that's the cost of me being the Savior. Do you think that will ever go away?"

"What, do you mean your title as Savior, or your paranoia?" Hook asked smugly.

"You know exactly what I mean," Emma said with a small laugh. "Do you think that I can ever let go of all of my fears so that I can be completely happy."

Killian held her as they looked out over the ocean while he answered, "If it is one thing that I've learned after all of my years of experiences with fear, it's that though at times fear can be crippling, it can also make you stronger. And it's done that for you. It's a part of who you are."

She looked back at him as she asked again, "And you? Do you believe it's done so for you?"

"Of course, love," the pirate responded nervously, momentarily looking down at the burn mark upon his arm mostly covered up by the sleeve of his jacket, until Emma pulled his head back up by his chin to get him to look into her eyes, knowing what it was he was thinking just then.

"Hey, the important thing is, you survived," Emma replied as she put her hands on both sides of his face. "You are stronger than you think you are. And in time, you will return to your full strength and realize this yourself. Your sessions with Archie are helping you, aren't they?"

He answered, "Yes of course. I have helped you all in many battles since my return, have I not? I don't allow my fears to control me when it matters most. I won't allow anything to happen to you again. So, where to? We have the open sea at our exposal and the fastest and grandest pirate ship to help get us there. Where is it that you wish to see?"

After thinking for a moment, Emma looked up at her husband again as she responded, "I would love to see where you're from, your own land."

"I'm afraid that would take a portal, love," Killian replied, then walked back over to stand at the wheel. "I come from another realm and I haven't been there for far too long, not since becoming a pirate after losing my brother, Liam. The truth is, I am not even certain I could find my way back. Storybrooke is my home now, so long as I'm with you. However, if you wish to see a new world, I might know of a way that could help us get there, or more importantly, someone."

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" his wife stated. "Let's go find this person. Just so long as we don't travel to a kingdom that's at all like Neverland where a vicious little boy is ruling it. I'm ready for anything, especially with you at my side."


	2. Chapter 2

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Two

While they continued to sail ahead, Hook steered the ship in the direction of the new land to where they were headed and Emma worked the sails as he had taught both her and her son how to do, the same as he taught Baelfire and very few others throughout his long life. Once the Jolly Roger was well on its way to its new course, the Captain stepped down into his quarters where Emma was preparing lunch for them both. She may like grilled cheese sandwiches and onion rings from the diner, but she knew that he preferred a BLT with fries and this voyage was as much for him as it was for her.

He spoke first saying, "I see Granny was kind enough to pack us a meal or two for our journey."

Emma smiled as she replied, "Yes and instead of what I usually order, I thought I would get something you would like better, at least for today."

"I'm perfectly fine with onion rings, love," Killian answered as he looked over at her skeptically while he sat down across from her. "Why is it that you're being so kind, not that you're ever not, but…?"

"I guess I'm just trying to show you that I am working on being more compromising," she responded in frustration. "And I'm failing by the look of things."

Hook gently put his hand over hers as he replied, "Not at all, but I do not understand. You've been plenty fair."

She scoffed and answered, "Not really, but it's just like you to say that I have been. Because of all the things that have happened in Storybrooke, between me and my family, everything that happens around us is about me in some way or another. So no, you're actually wrong, Killian. Which is why I say we go to wherever it is you want to go. Don't worry about trying to find a way to open a portal to some new world for me. I am perfectly happy just to live upon the ocean for the next few weeks, just as you used to do before you met me."

"Before I met you…" he responded, then paused and lowered his head in regret until Emma tightened her grip on his hand. "Before I met you, I was the villain I was who said those terrible things to you inside Cora's prison cell. The vile man who nearly killed an innocent woman for his revenge, and who nearly made it so that you lost your son. It's because of you that I am a good man again. Sailing the open seas is what the old part of me would want. You Emma, is all the man I am now wants. If another realm is where you want to go, or a deserted island, then so be it."

"I really did a number on you," the Savior replied smugly as she leaned forward and kissed him again, then started to eat. "You know what, I think we should go to somewhere we both have never been, but somewhere I think we will both love. It's also a place where we don't need magic to get to."

Hook looked at her in confusion as he asked, "And where is that?"

Emma smiled and answered, "Paris, or really all over Europe if we wanted to."

"I take it that this Europe is another part of your land?" he asked.

"Yes, well kind of," she responded quickly. "I mean, it's another continent. I've read a number of books that take place over there. I've been all over my own country for work, but never anywhere else. I say it's about time we explore our own first. If we still want to go to another realm later, we'll have plenty of time for that."

He replied quietly, "Aye Swan, that we do. So, it appears that it would be necessary to readjust our navigation once again. If you'll excuse me…"

Emma stopped him from getting up as she answered, "No, let me. You taught me how to navigate the stars, remember?"

"What the hell was that?" she cried out when all of a sudden, the ship rocked wildly as a blast struck the water on its starboard side, and both heroes rushed out onto the deck to find out where the attack was coming from, finding two ships coming up on them from behind. "Hook, do you recognize those ships?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell from here, love," Killian responded while he looked through his spyglass toward the danger coming up on them. "I for one however, do know that unless we can find someplace to find cover, we're…"

Emma interrupted, "Sitting ducks?"

He looked at her in confusion as he asked, "I beg your pardon?"

"Never mind, but I don't understand," she stated in confusion. "I thought this ship is protected by a cloaking spell. How is it that they're able to attack us?"

"It is, but whoever they are, it appears they have something to detect the Jolly Roger," Hook replied as he quickly scanned the maps in front of him. "They might not be able to see us, but they certainly know we're here. Which means that they're specifically looking for us, or my ship as the case may be."

Emma looked over at him like he was crazy as she asked again, "What are you doing? There's nowhere around for God knows how many miles. There's nowhere to hide and we certainly can't outrun two ships unless there's something you know that I don't?"

Killian nodded and answered, "Aye. It appears there's an uncharted island east of here only a few miles away."

"How do you know that?" she continued in frustration. "I don't see anything, but water!"

"There are birds flying overhead," he immediately responded. "They only fly out in the open ocean so long as there's land nearby for them to hunt for food or roost. I don't know why it's uncharted, but our only chance to get away from them is to land and hide, at least for now."

Emma groaned, then spoke again nervously saying, "That sounds great, but I've never had to survive on an island. I've never even watched Survivor. Not to mention there's two ships catching up fast. What are we supposed to do?"

Hook turned the Jolly Roger in the direction of the land ahead invisible to them, then looked into his wife's eyes and grinned as he said smugly, "Luckily for you, I have had to survive on an island before, a long time ago. And with a little help from your magic, we can outrun them long enough to by us time to land, hide my ship, then explore the island enough to find shelter. Don't worry, Swan. I will not let anything happen to you. And together, we can defeat whoever these men are."


	3. Chapter 3

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Three

"Be careful to watch your step and stay close to me, Swan," Killian said worryingly as soon as he stepped foot on land, then helped Emma out of the lifeboat they used to get from the Jolly Roger to the island on.

"You do realize that I can take care of myself just fine, as well as you, right?" she responded as she put her hand on his shoulder for support until she regained her balance from her sea legs. "I have before."

Hook smiled and then replied, "Aye, that you can, but call me old fashioned. I prefer to protect you so long as I am able."

Emma nodded, then answered, "Fair enough. You know, I can't believe we've only been gone from Storybrooke for half a day, and trouble has already found us. It's like it follows me around no matter where I am."

"Perhaps so, but we always manage to defeat whatever comes our way, so long as you stick with me, your dashing rapscallion," Hook spoke again smugly, making her smile. "Just stay on your guard. I don't know who these pirates are, nor what it is they've come for. I don't wish to take any unnecessary risks. For now, I think it best if we find the high ground and see if we can't get a better look at who we're dealing with. If we can find this place, then so will they. The Jolly Roger should be safe here on the cape of the island, I hope."

"That sounds like a good plan to me," she responded as she followed behind him. "One thing I want to know, why hasn't this place been found before? It's not like we've passed through some mystical portal or something, at least not that I'm aware of."

Killian looked around him cautiously while he replied, "Perhaps it is now. I found those maps in Gold's shop, after… And well we both know that everything he ever collected was an antique. The point is, who knows how old they are. This island could be well known by now."

Emma shrugged and added, "At least it still appears to be uninhabited, for now."

"Yes, until we came along," Hook stated in frustration, then suddenly swung around in panic as he pulled his cutlass with his one hand, while keeping his hook raised upon hearing the sound of a stick cracking on the ground behind them, finding it was only a small branch the fell down from one of the trees surrounding them. "Bloody hell, all these years of fighting monsters have made me nothing, but paranoid."

"You've been through a lot more than fighting just monsters, Killian," his wife answered sadly as she took his hook within her hand so that he could continue to hold onto his weapon. "I don't think any less of you, and I never will."

It was then that they found themselves unexpectedly surrounded by several heavily armed pirates, while their captain stepped out from among them with a smug look on his face as he spoke up saying, "Isn't that sweet, and proof that Captain Hook has indeed gone soft, just as the rumors claimed."

Hook glared at the man before him while keeping his firm stance between his enemy and his wife to protect her as he responded coldly, "Blackbeard. Why am I not surprised that you're the one behind this attack?"

"Hook is anything, but soft," Emma retorted angrily as she raised her hands and showed the men her magic in hope of keeping them back. "He's no longer a villain, but he's got plenty of fight in him to be able to defeat the likes of you. How the hell did you find us already? We were far ahead of you."

"Just as you appear to have magic, we have a little magic of our own to help us track what it is we want, beautiful," the dreaded pirate replied as he looked around at his men. "We have a very powerful ally."

Killian raised his blade up to Blackbeard's throat and continued as he asked, "And what is it that you want, my ship? You can forget it, she belongs to me. And I won't allow you to harm my wife. I would sooner die than allow her to fall into your hands."

Blackbeard laughed as he kept his eyes trained on the other Captain who had once bested him and then answered, "It's funny that you should use those words, Hook. However, we'll have plenty of time for all explanations later. Soon enough, I'll have everything I want and so will my employer. She's paying me plenty for what I'm about to bring her. What do you say? Shall we both fight one another once more like we began onboard your beloved ship?"

"If fighting you in another duel means that we both get to go free when I win, then I accept," Hook responded as Blackbeard made the first strike of his own cutlass when he forced Hook's blade away from his throat, while Killian forced Emma back behind him, keeping an eye on the other men around them as well to make sure they don't attempt to hurt her.

The two pirate captains clashed swords and were both evenly matched in skill and in strength. Blackbeard's men cheered, especially when the man who better fit the Captain Hook persona that the world knew, minus the hook, managed to knock the real villain turned hero onto his back, while he kept his blade and hook up to defend himself. Emma attempted to rush to his aid until Killian shouted for her to stay back, then managed to raise his legs high enough to be able to thrust Blackbeard off of him with a firm kick to his stomach.

Hook immediately got back to his feet and while Blackbeard was winded, he was able to disarm the ruthless man, then Killian raised his cutlass to his throat once more. However, Blackbeard seemed unworried by his defeat and simply laughed again, when all of a sudden, the fallen sword rose up from the ground on its own, magic now wielding it as the blade swiftly flew at Hook and slashed him deep across his left arm, causing him to cry out as he dropped his own cutlass.

"Killian!" Emma cried until she charged forward and forced all of the men backward with her own powers by conjuring up the roots and branches of the forest around them as they wrapped themselves around the pirates as well as the hilt of the sword to keep it from striking her husband again.

Blackbeard shouted out, "That's not in the rules of a duel between pirates, Savior!"

The blonde pulled her husband away while he gripped his bleeding arm tightly as she replied angrily, "As far as I'm concerned, you cheated first by using a magic blade to defeat Hook when you couldn't do it yourself. Come on, Killian. We need to get out of here."

"You won't be able to escape us so easily, Hook!" the villain called after them as they fled. "And you either, girly! My sword will break free. We will find you!"

"Captain Blackbeard, Sir," another man stepped forward a few minutes later after the pirates' prey had escaped, having not been around when the Savior's magic ensnared the rest of them. "Are you okay? I warned you about her, Sir. She's dangerous."

Blackbeard glared at the man wearing a wool kit cap as he answered, "Yes, indeed you did, Mr. Smee. I underestimated her, as well as Hook, but I won't make that same mistake when we find them again. Cut me loose. Did you find his ship?"

Smee nodded, then responded smugly, "Aye, Captain. I was just about to board her until I heard your men crying out for help. But don't you worry, by the time you return with our employer's prize, she'll be ready to sail back to our own realm. Are you sure that you really want to go through with this, Sir? I mean, what it is she wants us to do? Taking back the Jolly Roger is great and all, but the rest of the deal…?"

"Of course I'm sure," the Captain replied when he was freed. "Soon, we'll all be the richest band of pirates throughout the known seas, the grandest ship will be once again be in my possession, and then I will finally have my revenge on my greatest enemy. Why would I not risk everything I have, if not for that?"

"You're right," the once first mate under a different pirate captain answered nervously. "I mean, of course you're right."


	4. Chapter 4

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Four

After running for as long as they were able, Emma finally stopped to catch her breath, while Hook did the same as he looked back at her and stated, "We can't stop now, love. We need to try to get as far away from those pirates as possible."

Emma turned toward him and noticed his blood seeping through his fingers he held over the gash in his arm as she asked, "How is it that you're in worse shape than I'm in and you can still find it in yourself to keep on running? Let me take a look at that."

"We don't have time to waste," Killian answered curtly as he attempted to pull away from her, then pulled her along until she stopped again while holding firmly on his good arm. "Please, Swan. I may have bested Blackbeard, before his newfound magic, but he's ruthless and I have no idea what he has planned should he catch us."

"And I need to heal your arm before you pass out or lose too much blood," his wife immediately replied as she put her hand over the wound and allowed her magic to flow through her, into him. "There, you'll be fine. At least that's one wound of yours I can heal."

He smiled, then responded with composure, "I have had many wounds in my days as both villain and hero. I wear plenty of scars, and yet I'm still here."

She looked away as she answered sadly, "It was thanks to me you nearly weren't."

"I thought we made it clear that we were both to work on forgiving ourselves as we have forgiven each other," Hook replied with a smile as he reached out to pull a strand of hair away from her face with his hook. "Come, love. We need to keep going, or they'll find us for…"

All of a sudden, the ground shook wildly when a crevasse opened up beneath their feet as a wave of power travelled from the distance the heroes had just travelled, causing both Emma and Hook to fall into it and lose consciousness as the rock and dust settled over them, nearly burying them completely. It wasn't long before Blackbeard and the rest of the pirates came upon them, as the Captain ordered his men to pull their new prisoners free and bring them back to the Jolly Roger.

"I warned you, Hook," the man said cruelly as two of his men carried his rival past him. "I warned you that you wouldn't be able to escape from me this time. Place his woman down in the brig. I have something different in mind for him."

Hours later…

When Emma slowly awoke, she struggled to take in her surroundings and found that she was inside the holding cell of her husband's ship, with a shackle chained around her ankle, then immediately looked around for any sign of Killian, but when she didn't see him, she raised her hands to attempt to use her magic to free herself until Blackbeard walked down to stand in front of her cell as he spoke up saying, "You really don't want to do that, milady. Any attempt to escape, and only your pirate husband will suffer for your resistance."

The Savior glared at their captor before her as she responded, "Where is he? What have you done with him?"

"Don't worry, he's perfectly safe for now," the Captain answered with a smile on his face as he pulled Killian's hook out from a pocket within his red coat and held it up for her to see. "He's chained up the same as you, just in a different place onboard my ship, so that the two of you cannot cavort against me."

"This ship doesn't belong to you," Emma replied sternly as she continued to stare ahead at the villain. "When we break free, and we will, I will see to it that the Jolly Roger is put back in the hands of the captain she really belongs to."

He ran one hand along the curve of the hook while holding it within his other hand, then laughed as he responded, "Don't you mean, into the hand… the ship belongs to? Without this, Killian Jones isn't much of a pirate anymore. In fact, he's barely even a man. Hook is nothing, but a monstrosity with nothing, but a stub where his hand should be, a man who has been brought back from the dead and has the scars across his body to prove it."

She grabbed the bars between her and Blackbeard out of anger, then stated in frustration, "The only monster aboard this vessel is you, and maybe some of your men. Whatever it is you think you know, you don't."

"I know the truth, Miss. Swan," the pirate answered smugly as Smee walked down into the hold with a tray of food as well as a goblet of rum for her to drink.

"The Captain… Hook, told me some time ago that you had developed a fond taste for rum, Miss. Swan," the man in the red knit cap said nervously as he pushed the tray through a small opening within the bars, then quickly stepped away, afraid that she might retaliate against him for betraying the man she loved. "I mean that in the best sense, of course."

Emma glared at him as she replied, "Killian always knew you were a rat and yet he defended you, always protected you, and you still betrayed him. Why would you align yourself with him?"

Mr. Smee looked between his new captain and the wife of his former captain as he responded, "He can help me get what I want, better than Hook ever could. He betrayed me first."

"And now as for the reason why we're here," Blackbeard continued as he began to pace back and forth in front of the cell. "You see, I was hired to work for a powerful woman who calls herself the Enchantress. I don't know any more about her, except for what she needs me to procure for her and that, beautiful, is where your beloved husband comes in."

"Why would this witch, whoever she is, want Killian?" Emma asked coldly, fearing she already knew why.

He smiled again, then answered, "Rumors spread of a man, a pirate captain, who died and found himself down in the Underworld for his many evil deeds throughout his long life, then had been returned to the land of the living. I of course heard the rumors myself, but I never imagined that they were about my most bitter rival. It wasn't until the rumors reached the Enchantress' ears, that she found herself someone who could cross worlds to find this man for her and that I learned it was Hook I was seeking. Thanks to Smee here, I was finally able to find him at last."

She quickly asked again angrily, "Why do rumors matter to her? Why does she need Hook? Answer me!"

"I don't fully know the reason for why she wants your husband, other than the fact that she is going to use him to enter into the Underworld to bring back someone who was taken from her a long time ago," Blackbeard replied with a grin. "And I'm guessing you know that in order to do that, one needs the blood of someone who's died and been there, then has been resurrected, as well as a living soul to trade for the dead."

"Not to mention a portal to get you there," Emma responded curtly. "And neither of us will tell you where it is."

Smee spoke again saying, "I'm afraid there's more than just the one in Storybrooke. In fact, there's a portal down into the Underworld in every magical world."

Blackbeard added, "And the one that we happen to be headed toward right now, is one this Enchantress has discovered in a kingdom of which I am very well versed with; Arendelle. We're about to pass through the portal any moment now thanks to help from a magic bean."

"Arendelle, the kingdom ruled over by Elsa who has magical powers herself?" Emma stated to herself, though her words were spoken out loud.

"You've heard of the ice witch?" Smee asked in surprise. "Wait a minute, that's right. She was in Storybrooke for a time, as was her sister Anna and her husband. If it makes you feel any better, the Queen isn't this Enchantress we're help…"

The Captain interrupted, "Smee! Go back up on deck and see to our other guest's needs. He should be waking again soon himself."

Emma tried to reach for Blackbeard through the bars to hurt him, but failed as he started up the stairs toward the ship's deck after the rat, then she called out after him angrily, "I won't let you do this, I will stop you!"

As soon as the captors left the brig, Emma immediately looked around for any possible way of escape. If she had been Blackbeard's only prisoner, escape would have easy, as all she would have to do would be to blast her way out and knock all of the pirates off the ship and into the ocean. However, because Killian was a prisoner too and she had no idea where he was being held or what kind of magic these men were using for power in order to keep them both detained, Emma knew she couldn't risk it, nor would she leave the man she loved behind.

Suddenly, the Savior spotted an old handkerchief lying on the floor a few feet away, appearing to have fallen from one of the Captain's pockets, as she immediately summoned the cloth to her, used a small lock pick she had concealed upon her person to break the skin of her finger, wrote a brief message in her own blood, then finally folded the cloth into a flying crane and sent it to her parents back home with her magic, hoping to set it free before they passed through the portal to Arendelle.


	5. Chapter 5

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Five

Back in Storybrooke…

Mary Margaret and David walked down the street toward Granny's while pushing Neal in the stroller, but before they arrived, the Charmings ran into Archie, who was also out walking Pongo, and he was the first to speak up saying, "Good evening, Mary Margaret, David, and of course Neal. And where are we off to?"

David reached out to shake the psychiatrist's hand in greeting as he replied, "Where do you think? Granny's of course. Would you like to join us for dinner?"

"I would like that, but first I need to bring Pongo back home," he responded, then looked in the direction of the diner a short distance away. "You know Granny's rules, no dogs are allowed. By the way, were Emma and Killian able to get off for their honeymoon all right?"

"Yes finally," Snow answered happily. "As much as I love having my daughter around, I was beginning to wonder if she would ever leave. I mean, they married months ago and we kept trying to convince her it was okay to leave for awhile, especially so that Hook can have time to away where he can continue to recover better than if he were to remain here where there's been so much trouble lately. She just kept on making excuses not to go."

Her husband added, "She's just stubborn like that. Emma wanted to make sure we were doing okay too. She knows that we've all been struggling since our trip down to the Underworld."

Archie nodded and looked between them again as he stated, "Yes of course. And how do you feel Hook… I mean Killian, is doing?"

"We should really be asking you that," David replied worryingly. "He hasn't really talked to us much. He tries to act like himself, but he flinches at loud noises and sights of fire, he's quieter, and not nearly as cocky as he used to be. The only time he acts like a pirate is when he's fighting alongside us and even then it's clear he's holding back a little."

"It's also clear that he still blames himself for all of his regrets, especially of the things he did while he was a Dark One," Mary Margaret responded sadly. "We've been trying to reassure him that we've forgiven him, but…"

The man of conscience spoke again after she cut herself off as he answered, "But he doesn't seem to accept your kindness. Believe me, I've seen it as well. Killian is making progress. It's slow going, but little by little he's begun to open up. One thing that I've noticed though, is that there is something that happened to him down there, something that pains him far deeper than anything that he's ever done to hurt anyone, or anything that's ever been done to hurt him. If he is going to have any chance of becoming the man he is again, then eventually that will have to make itself known."

Charming was about to reply when Mary Margaret placed a hand on David's chest as she stared up into the sky at something small flying toward her until it finally landed in her hand, then David asked, "What is that?"

"It's a handkerchief folded into the shape of a crane," his wife responded as she placed their baby into David's hands, then quickly unfold the cloth to read whatever message might be written on it, only to find that it was blank. "There's nothing on it. I don't understand. Why would Emma send us a piece of cloth?"

"How do you know it's from Emma?" Archie asked in confusion as he looked between the Princess and Prince.

David answered, "Because, before they left we were talking about sending each other a message if any of us were to run into any trouble, by way of magic, or bird."

Regina walked over as she replied, "And it appears she did both. Perhaps if you want to read what's on that piece of cloth, it needs a touch of your blood. Emma must have used a blood magic spell to write the message."

"They have run into trouble," Snow said again after using a pin from Regina's hair, which the Queen had offered her, to prick her finger so that the message would reveal itself to them, then read what her daughter wrote to them. " _Blackbeard's taken us captive and is taking us through a portal to Arendelle. Get Gold to open the door again in the apprentice's manor and come right away. They're looking to raise someone else from the Underworld and are going to use Hook to do it. Please hurry!_ "

"My God, as if Hook hasn't been through enough," Regina spoke again nervously when her friend finished. "If they succeed and take him back there…"

David finished for her, "Even if we followed after them to bring Hook back again, there's no way he'd come back from it a second time. He's barely recovered now as it is. No, we can't let these other pirates get that far. If they do, we will lose Emma too. We have to get ourselves to Arendelle as soon as possible."

Mary Margaret looked at her husband nervously as she responded, "But in order to do that, we need to convince Rumpelstiltskin to help us reopen the portal into Arendelle and we all know that he won't do anything to help us rescue Hook, especially after keeping him locked up in that cage all this time."

"Perhaps he will if we bring Belle along with us," Archie answered as everyone turned to look at him. "If he'll listen to anyone…"

"You might be right," Regina replied curtly. "But, he's all Dark One with all the other Dark Ones inside of him now. I doubt any love for Belle remains within him anymore."

Charming looked between them and responded, "It doesn't matter. We need to get to Arendelle as soon as possible. And Rumpelstiltskin is our best chance to do it."

Outside of the Dark One's prison…

Gold turned his head toward his visitors as they approached, but didn't stand from the spot on the ground where he was sitting, then stated, "Well, this is an unpleasant surprise. What is it that you want?"

"We need your help to relocate and open the door in the old manor that leads to Arendelle," Mary Margaret answered sternly. "Emma and Hook are in danger."

"I know, which is why I must tell you no," the villain inside the cage replied smugly. "I helped you rescue that pirate enough. Any trouble he's in this time, it will be up to himself and his new wife to get him out of it."

Belle stepped forward and uttered softly, "Please Rumple, if you have any love left for me at all, I ask you to please help us."

He laughed and then asked, "And what is it that you are willing to do for me in return? I don't believe anything short of being set free again, will ever get me to help any of you ever again, including you, dearie."

"What if we were to put you back inside Pandora's Box?" Regina retorted cruelly. "I have no problem with putting you back in place where you'll suffer for the rest of eternity. No problem at all."

"But I do," Belle responded as she pulled out the box from inside her coat, then glared at the man she once loved. "Either do as we ask, Rumple, or I will put you back inside the box long enough to get us to the manor where you will open the portal, then I release you back into your cell when you're finished. What do you say?"

The monster finally stood and answered, "Very well. I still can't say no to a plea from the woman I still love, despite her shortcomings. I will help you get yourselves to Arendelle, but know that once you're there, it will be up to you to get back. The portal doesn't stay open for long."

Mary Margaret spoke up again saying confidently, "We will find a way back. Elsa and Anna live there. Surely they can help us like we did for them. Regina, you need to stay here with Belle to help her make sure that Rumpelstiltskin can't get away. Me and David will go and help our daughter and Killian."

"You will most likely need a bit more help than that," Archie called out from behind them, having followed them after being with them during their earlier conversation. "I may not be much of a fighter, but it's time I do something other than just be everyone's consciences. I hope I'm wrong, but you might need me."

"Thank you, Archie," David said respectfully as he reached out his hand to shake the brave cricket's. "It will certainly be an honor to have you join us."


	6. Chapter 6

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Six

When the Jolly Roger finally became docked at one of Arendelle's ports at the farthest corner of the kingdom, two pirates led Emma, whose wrists were locked together in shackles behind her back, up to the deck of the ship where Blackbeard and the rest of his men were waiting for them.

"Where is he?" Emma asked firmly as she glared at the Captain standing before her with a smug look on his face.

"It's all right, love," Hook responded as two more men led him out from the Captain's quarters, both of his arms tied down tightly and stretched out across a staff that ran along behind his head. "I'm right here."

When Killian stumbled and the men made no effort to help him, Emma rushed forward to steady him against herself while the pirates surrounding them simply watched with pleasure at the sight of their prisoners, then Blackbeard said cruelly, "You will have to forgive the rod you're attached to, Hook, but seeing as you have no left hand, I can't very well put you in shackles to secure you as I did your girlfriend, can I?"

Killian clenched his jaw as he did whenever he was stressed or angry and looked at his enemy with hardly any emotion in his eyes at all while Emma remained against his chest, then he answered, "I told you, I don't care what you do with me, but you have me now and we both know that I cannot fight you like this, so let my wife go, please."

"We both know that I can't do that," the dreaded pirate replied as he stepped forward and pulled Emma away from the man she loved and held onto her tightly while she struggled within his grasp. "Because she'll use her magic to try to free you the moment that I do. Don't you worry about her, old friend. I assure you that Miss. Swan will remain alive so long as she cooperates and stays within mine and my men's company. And when they've had their fill of entertainment thanks to her, I will then set her free. By that point, you will long be dead as you should have remained."

"If you so much as touch her…!" Hook began to shout angrily until he was suddenly thrust back roughly against the mast behind him by an invisible force, causing him to cry out as well as Emma, who attempted to rush to him until she was pulled back. "Aah!"

Emma was pulled back again as she cried out, "Stop! Let him go!"

Blackbeard held up a pendant he wore from around his neck, the pendant appearing to be the source of his magic as it was glowing, then the man laughed and responded, "It's quite beautiful, is it not? The power to do whatever I want to do, right here within my hands. It's because of this gift that I work for the Enchantress. Whatever power you might possess, Miss. Swan, I assure you I can match it. So don't think that you can fight against me to try to protect this man. We will be bringing him before the Enchantress, who will then return him to the Underworld where he belongs. And if you try to help him again…"

"You will what?" the Savior stated coldly. "You and I both know that you can't kill him before you arrive at the portal."

"You're right, but I can hurt him," the pirate captain answered smugly as he increased the pressure forced against Hook and caused him to cry out once again. "Perhaps you would like me to remove his other hand?"

Tears came to her eyes as she looked over at her husband, whose head hung down low over his chest, then back to Blackbeard and replied, "No! Please just leave him alone. I won't fight you."

Finally, the force disappeared completely as Killian collapsed against floor of the deck, then upon orders, two of the men stepped forward to pull Hook back up to his feet and ushered him off the ship, while Smee stepped in to pull his former captain's wife forward as well. The rat looked nervous and almost as if he regretted what was going on, but Emma knew better. Smee did whatever was best for him, no matter the cost to others, including those that he might have cared about once.

The pirates led their prisoners through the hills and forest surrounding Arendelle, Blackbeard using the pendant to push away any obstacles such as boulders, trees, and bushes within their path, and when they came upon a small clearing, the ruthless Captain ordered his men to stop and set up camp for the night.

After the men placed Hook, who had not said a word since leaving his ship, down upon the ground carelessly with his back up against a larger boulder behind him for support, Emma turned to the man in charge after she had also been set down on the ground and pleaded, "Let me go to him. I just want to make sure that he's alright. You have your magic. I can't strike against you and you know that I would never do anything to risk the life of the man I love."

"Why is it that you love him?" Blackbeard asked curiously. "How is it that the Savior fell in love with a pirate, who used to be more ruthless than even I?"

"You would never understand," she responded coolly. "You were right about one thing, Killian isn't that man any longer, but in a fair fight, he would still be able to stop you."

The Captain laughed again, then untied her hands as he motioned for his men to let her pass so she could go to Hook's side, then he stated, "Looking at him now, I highly doubt it. Take care of him, Miss. Swan. I would prefer him to be more presentable for when I present him to her, not the weak coward I see before me."

Emma rushed to Hook's side and knelt down before him as she swiftly undid the ropes that bound his arms to the staff, then pulled him close as she kissed him and wrapped her arms around him. As she did so, he simply whispered her name while he hugged her tightly. They remained close for several minutes. However, upon feeling the increase of speed and fear grip her heart, she realized that something was wrong with him as she leaned back and looked into his eyes, which she discovered had become fixated on the flames of the fire set by the men surrounding them, his face showing that of terror, and Emma knew that his mind had become lost within the memories of his time within the Underworld once more.

She immediately placed her hands on the sides of his face as she spoke again saying softly, "Killian? It's all right. I'm right here and you're still safe. Just focus on the sound of my voice."

"I'm sorry, love," he said weakly, tears escaping the corners of his eyes as he lowered his head again, being unable to look into her own. "I didn't mean…"

"Don't apologize," Emma whispered as she pressed her forehead up against his, then gently lifted his head to try to get him to look at her and ran her hand over his face and through his hair. "Please don't shut me out right now. You know that you can talk to me, about anything."

Turning his eyes away again, Killian finally answered quietly, "Before you found me… I was forced to see and feel every horror I inflicted upon all those people I ever hurt, all those I killed. Every evil I ever committed and I could feel their terror, their pain… I felt their final moments as the light went out of their eyes and their souls left their bodies as they died, all because of what I did to them. I felt your family's pain, your pain… Emma, I'm so sorry."

His wife leaned in to kiss him again and began to cry herself as she replied, "This is what you've been keeping from me? God, Killian, I can't… I'm the one who's sorry. I should have found you sooner. Everything that you did before you found your good heart, that is not who you are. You made amends and for those you couldn't do so for, you've fought alongside us against all of the evils within both our worlds. You became a good and selfless man, my hero. Please, do not let your hate for yourself destroy the man I love with my whole heart, including the half that is inside of you. If you do, they win. These villains will win. I promise you, I will not allow these pirates or this Enchantress to bring you back there. Do you think you can run?"

"If you see a chance to break free…" he stated as he finally turned to look at her until she immediately cut him off upon knowing what he was going to say.

"I told you, I won't leave you behind," she interrupted sternly as she turned toward Blackbeard and focused on the image of the pendant around his neck inside her mind as she raised her hand to summon it to her. "We're getting out of here, together."

Within moments, the talisman appeared in the Savior's hands, unknown to the man formerly wearing it, and without another though, Emma shot power from her hands at the pirates, shooting them all through the air and into the trees around them to knock as many of them out as she could.

Emma immediately grabbed Hook to help him back to his feet and together they ran as fast as they could through the forest for as long as they could to put their enemies as far behind them as possible, hearing as Blackbeard shouted out at his men to get up and get after their captives. Unfortunately, their freedom was short lived when they suddenly came upon a cliff overlooking a tall waterfall. If it wasn't for Emma pulling him back in time, Killian would have gone over.

He quickly spoke up saying, "You're going to have to jump, Swan. They'll be on us any minute and I can't swim with only one hand."

She shook her head as she responded, "No, we'll just run back the way we came and head in another direction."

Killian was about to object when he turned his head just in time to see one of Blackbeard's men come out into the opening with his pistol raised and aimed toward Emma, then swiftly jumped in front of musket ball as the pirate fired while he pushed her back, causing her to fall over the cliff into the rushing water below, the ball striking Hook in his lower abdomen as it caused him to fall back hard to the ground on the cliff's edge. He managed to remain conscious, but barely as he faintly watched Blackbeard run his cutlass through his man's chest to kill him.

"It looks like the woman you love paid for her mistake, thinking she could actually get away with crossing me," the villain said cruelly as Killian turned away from him to look out over the waterfall for any sign of Emma surviving her fall.

"Sir, shouldn't we go after her, in case she survived that is?" Smee asked nervously. "I mean, what about the pendant? She took it from you. Without it, you're just Captain Blackbeard again."

Blackbeard smiled down at Hook, then turned to the first mate as he answered, "No, we've still got what we came for. The pendant may be lost, but that doesn't mean we won't still be rewarded when we arrive back at the Enchantresses palace. I want Hook taken care of. He's certainly no good to us dead."

Smee nodded as he watched as a few of the other men pull his former captain off of the ground, then he looked out over the falls once more and replied to himself, "I think that talisman would be a great treasure."


	7. Chapter 7

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Seven

While they continued to stand outside of Rumpelstiltskin's prison, Regina spoke up again saying with frustration, "This is a bad idea. We all know where this portal to Arendelle is. Surely I can get it open with my own magic, or the fairies. Why do we need Gold?"

Mary Margaret quickly answered, "Because, Mr. Gold is the only one who knows how to get the door to reappear and we don't have time to wait for you or the fairies to figure it out. Our daughter needs us now."

"Fair enough," the Queen responded ominously. "Let's get this over with then. If you try anything, Gold…"

"Save your threats… dearie," the beast inside the cage sneered coldly as he stood when the door to his cell opened and Belle and David walked inside, the Prince with his sword drawn to protect himself and Belle. "And put away your sword before you hurt yourself, Charming. I have no intention of hurting either of you at this time. There's no point, until there is."

David glared at him as kept his sword raised and replied, "You'll forgive me if I don't trust you. Are you ready, Belle?"

Without a word, Belle opened Pandora's Box like she did the day she first put him inside to save Emma and Killian, once again pulling the man she loved until his final betrayal in, then together with the rest of the group with her, they made their way to the apprentice's manor in search for the magical door to a new world. After Rumpelstiltskin was released, he summoned the apprentice's magic broom into his hand, then cast a spell to make it do what it was meant to do, opening the portal as the villain gave his word he would do for the heroes.

Snow quickly opened the door and when she saw that it looked as it did before, she turned back to her husband and smiled, then stated, "It worked. We can go find Emma and Hook."

"If you think that you're going some new land without us, you're mistaken, sister," Leroy said as he and two other dwarfs, Bashful and Happy, entered the manor a few minutes after the others arrived. "You guys are running headfirst into unknown danger. I want to help. There's nothing better for us to do here anyway."

"How did you even know about us leaving?" David asked the short man curiously. "We didn't tell anyone else aside from those of us who are right here."

Happy answered, "Word spreads quickly here in Storybrooke."

Bashful added shyly, "Dopey saw you guys heading out here and we knew that something was going on."

"Please, Your Highness," Grumpy pleaded again when he looked between their two leaders. "I know the other dwarfs prefer to stay here, but I like to be where the action is and right now, that's not here."

"Our town's seen plenty of action," Regina responded suspiciously. "What exactly is the real reason why you want to go help the Charmings, dwarf?"

He glared at the mayor as he replied, "My name is Leroy or Grumpy, not dwarf, and well... Okay, the truth is I owe Hook twenty-five doubloons, whatever the heck those are. I'm hoping that if I help to save his life, again, that he'll forgive the debt. When it comes to dice, that pirate's either lucky as hell, or he's a cheater. I want to believe it's the latter, but I have no proof."

David smirked, then answered, "You said it yourself, he's a pirate. He's both lucky and a cheater. We'd be happy to have you three come along with us, Leroy. Thank you."

"Thank you, Gold," Mary Margaret stated nervously as she looked back at the beast as the three dwarfs entered through the portal, followed by Archie, while David waited for his wife to enter before he did. "If you can prove that you're not going to be a threat to us any longer, we may let you have your freedom back after all, but don't do it for us. Be the man Belle once loved, for her."

"I'm afraid that won't be possible any longer, as I am not the man I was before all of you chose to turn on me for the last time," Rumpelstiltskin responded smugly as Snow and Charming passed through, then he suddenly froze the remaining heroes within the room before they could stop him again and blasted the door into oblivion before vanishing in a black cloud of smoke.

Belle cried out worryingly, "No, Rumple! My God, what do we do? This portal might be the only way for them to return home. If they try to come back through the doorway on the other side…"

Regina groaned and then replied, "I suppose I'll have to enlist the fairies' help to see if we can't rebuild the door again. Let's hope that Queen Elsa and her sister have access to a supply of magic beans, otherwise they're probably screwed."

Meanwhile, in Arendelle…

Emma slowly began to come around as she weakly opened her eyes, finding that she couldn't see through the haze that clouded her sight, due to her plummet through the rushing water of the falls nearby. She slowly struggled to move until small hands gently pushed her back down, then pulled the blankets covering her body back up to her neck to try to warm her.

"You need to rest or you'll make your head feel worse," a strange voice said despondently. "You had quite a fall."

"I don't… I can't rest while… Who are… you?" she finally managed to ask as she turned her head toward the voice to try to get a better look at whoever was helping her, seeing a fire burning from behind something that resembled a snowman.

It was then that another voice sounded as a man called out quietly, "What have I told you, Olaf? You can't just appear before strangers or they'll freak out."

The snowman answered in confusion, "But she's not freaking out."

"You're a talking snowman?" Emma stated more clearly as she struggled to sit up again while staring at the small figure with a cloud of flurries swirling around his head.

"And now she is," the man continued curtly and then knelt down beside the woman to help her sit up and lean back against the mountain wall behind her, then suddenly recognized who she was upon getting a better look at her face. "You're Emma, from that strange town we were trapped in a year ago?"

Emma looked at him as the blurriness finally cleared, then she responded, "Kristoff, Anna's fiancé, right?"

He smiled and replied, "Husband actually, now anyway. We married shortly after we returned home and threw Hans out of our kingdom for good. What happened to you and how did you get all the way here to Arendelle from your land?"

"It's a long story," she answered weakly as all of her memories of what happened before she had awakened suddenly came flooding back to her, then struggled to rise to her feet with help from both Kristoff and Olaf. "Oh, God… Killian! I need to talk to Elsa."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, just take it easy!" Kristoff quickly responded as he tried to steady her while she fought against their efforts to help her. "We'll go to the castle as soon as you're able to move, but right now, you're not exactly thinking too clearly. You're pretty banged up after that insane fall from that cliff up there. You're lucky."

Emma didn't quit until she was finally steady and turned her head to look at the friends who helped her, then she replied sternly, "You don't understand, they have Hook. They have my husband. I have to help him, but I need your help to do it; yours, Elsa's, and Anna's."

Olaf stared at the blonde as he spoke quickly, "I'm sorry."

"Wait, who has your husband?" Kristoff asked remorsefully.

"Blackbeard and his men," Emma said in anger. "I have to stop them and get Killian back before they kill him."


	8. Chapter 8

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Eight

Emma remained quiet during their journey to the castle while they rode in a wagon, pulled by Sven. A talking snowman and a reindeer being Kristoff closest friends was strange, but the newcomer to Arendelle didn't bother asking the usual questions and it was clear that she wasn't going to talk about what happened to her and the pirate who had helped them while they were in Storybrooke, until she could see Elsa and Anna too. The Ice Master kept glancing over at the woman while he drove the cart, noticing as she fiddled with the ring she wore over her ring finger on her left hand, and saw a few tears slip from her eyes, but he knew not to disturb her from her thoughts, having seen the same look on Elsa's face a number of times. Olaf tried, but Kristoff cut him off before he could get very far.

"We're here," he finally said as he motioned for the guards standing watch outside of the castle gates to let them inside, then pulled back on Sven's reins to bring the animal to a stop. "I know that Anna and Elsa will be very excited to see you, even under the circumstances. They're most likely…"

"Emma!" Mary Margaret shouted in relief as she and David came rushing toward their daughter from inside the castle, followed closely by Archie, Grumpy, Bashful, and Happy. "Oh my God, Emma, are you alright? You look terrible!"

As her mother swept her into a tight hug, while David put his hand gently over the back of her head for support, Emma weakly stated in surprise, "You guys made it? I… I know I asked you to… to come, but I…"

David noticed the bruise that had appeared on her face from whatever trouble she had run into as he replied, "We all came through the portal, just as you suggested. Gold helped us, not necessarily willingly, but… Emma, where's Hook? Is he okay?"

"No, no, they took him," the Savior answered fearfully. "Blackbeard and his pirates, Smee too. I have to talk to Elsa and Anna."

"We're right here," the Queen responded immediately as she walked over to them, as did her sister. "Your parents and friends arrived only a few minutes ago and informed us that you and Hook were in danger. Thank goodness Kristoff found you."

Emma pulled away from her parents' embrace while she spoke with more anger than she intended as she replied, "Yeah and Killian wasn't so lucky. Aagh! I'm sorry, but we just got him back. I knew something like this would happen, that trouble would find us again the moment we left home. I was right. I promised him I wouldn't let them drag him back there and now..."

Everyone looked at her in confusion as David raised his hands to her shoulders in a comforting manner and finally took control of the situation as he spoke again saying, "Shush, it's okay, just calm down and talk to us about what happened from the beginning. What happened?"

"We were attacked by the pirates hours after we left Storybrooke," the Savior explained sadly as Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff led Emma and the others inside the castle, heading toward the dining hall where they could offer their guests something to eat. "We had no choice, but to head to shore of a small island nearby, hoping that we would be able to get ahead of them and find a way to protect ourselves. But they surrounded us so suddenly. Eventually, Blackbeard revealed that he was given this pendant he wore around his neck. It gave him the power to do whatever he wanted it to do for him. Someone who calls herself the Enchantress gave it to him. We were taken prisoner, taken back to the Jolly Roger, which we have to get back too by the way, and me and Killian were separated during our journey through the portal. I think he said something about having a stash of magic beans, also given to him by her."

"Which is how Blackbeard was able to pass between worlds," Archie said quickly.

Emma nodded and then continued, "I finally saw the opportunity to use my powers against them so that we could escape, but it wasn't enough. It was stupid and because of me… because of me, Killian jumped in front of a bullet to protect me, but the force of him falling back against me caused me to fall over a cliff that overlooked a waterfall. I fell through the rushing water, then woke up however long later to Kristoff and a talking snowman taking care of me."

Leroy looked at her like she was crazy as he asked, "A talking snowman?"

"Yeah, hi!" Olaf answered as he raise his hand in greeting, causing the three dwarfs to step back in shock upon seeing the strange being. "I'm Olaf and I like…"

"Save it, Olaf," Kristoff quickly interrupted. "Now's not the time for you to tell us you like warm hugs and summer."

Anna smiled as she responded, "Actually, you just did. It's okay though."

Mary Margaret smiled at them sadly, then turned back to her daughter again as she asked with worry, "Did Blackbeard say why they wanted the two of you?"

"It isn't me they were after, just Killian," Emma replied angrily. "It's just like I told you in my message. This Enchantress wants to use him to open another portal to the Underworld, then they plan to trade his soul with someone else's, to bring back someone else for her."

"Oh my goodness, that's… that's horrible!" Anna answered as she gasped. "But how is this, even possible? And why Hook?"

David ran his hand through his hair, then he responded, "It's because Hook's already been there."

Kristoff was now even more confused as he asked, "Been where… you mean to the Underworld? That's only possible if he…"

"Died," the Prince simply stated. "It's a real long story. The most important thing right now, is that we don't allow this sorceress or enchantress, or whoever… whatever she is to send him back there. Hook sacrificed his life for us once and by saving Emma up on that cliff, he might have just done so again, but we can't let them succeed in dragging him back there."

"How do we know he isn't already dead?" Grumpy asked again as he turned back to Emma, not really meaning to sound so insensitive. "You said it yourself, sister. He was shot up on that cliff. Do you have any idea how bad he was hit?"

Emma looked at the dwarf sadly as she shook her head and finally replied, "No, but if he were dead, I would know it. I'd be dead too, remember? Because we share my heart, I can now feel everything he feels; his fear, his pain… Mom, Dad, you know what I mean. You can feel when something's wrong with one another. You would know if one of you were hurt, or worse…"

Snow nodded as she looked over at her husband, then back to their daughter and answered fearfully, "Yeah, we would. And we would both be dead. Emma's right, Killian is still alive."

"But he's hurt bad," the Savior added. "Elsa, Anna, have either of you ever heard of this, Enchantress, or know where we might be able to find the portal into the Underworld?"

"I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that the Underworld exists and that there's a way to go down there without actually dying," Anna responded as Kristoff walked up behind her and pulled his wife into his arms. "Or why anyone would want to for that matter."

Emma looked at the younger woman as she replied firmly, "You would do it for love, true love. It's possible this witch is doing the same thing, but in this case, she's willing to sacrifice the life of a good man to get back whoever the hell it is she's looking to raise from the dead. That's what makes her a monster. And Blackbeard's helping her for power and riches."

Elsa nodded in agreement, then spoke up again saying, "I've never heard of this woman, but there may be someone who can help you."

"If anyone can, it would be Grandpabbie," Kristoff immediately answered. "I'll go and get Sven ready for our trip to the mountains."

"Grandpabbie?" Happy asked in confusion as everyone looked between him, as well as Arendelle's Queen and Princess.

Anna smiled and responded, "Yes, he's the leader of the rock trolls that live here within the mountains. Kristoff was raised by them. They have powers of their own and are very, very wise."

Elsa continued, "If anyone would be able to help us save Hook, it'll be them. We will take you to them at once."

Once their friends new to their kingdom finished explaining as much as they could, Elsa and Anna ushered Olaf out of the room so that they would be able to have some time alone while they took the time to eat and try to comfort the woman who had risked so much to save them back when they were in trouble in their world as she finally broke down and cried again within her parents' arms. The dwarfs with them walked down to the opposite side of the table in order to give their leaders their space as they quickly began to fill a plate with food to eat, while Archie took a seat close by, prepared to be there for their Savior if she needed him to be, even though he suspected that she was done talking for now.


	9. Chapter 9

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Nine

Once the pirates returned to their camp with Hook, the two men that carried him laid him down on the ground beside the fire, then Smee knelt down beside him and pulled back his leather jacket, as well as his vest and shirt beneath, in order to get a better look at musket ball wound in his stomach. While he began to work by using a cloth to try to soak up the blood flowing out from the wound so he could see how bad it was, the rat noticed her former Captain staring at him weakly from the corner of his eyes, the look being that of pain and betrayal.

The man in the red knit cap kept glancing at the wounded man and when he couldn't take the staring any longer, he finally spoke up saying, "I swear, it's nothing personal, Cap… Hook. I had to do what was best for me. Surely you of all people can understand that."

Killian turned his head so that he was staring up at the skies as he responded faintly, "I suppose… suppose I can. I always figured our friendship would come to this one day, but… I was hoping I would be wrong. Aah!"

"Sorry," the first mate replied quickly and nervously when Hook cried out, his back arching up off the ground as the pain he was feeling flared hotter when Smee pushed too hard against the wound. "You're lucky, the musket ball went right through thanks to it striking you so far to the left."

"So, no chance of me dying… sooner than you or Blackbeard want then," Hook retorted disdainfully. "That is a shame."

Smee looked up at his new Captain as the man came to stand over them while he ignored Hook's contempt and continued, "But if we're going to stop this bleeding and help you to remain alive long enough for us to get you to our employer, then we're going to have to cauterize it. It's going to hurt like hell."

Hook glared at his old friend as he answered coldly, "You have no… idea what Hell… feels like."

"That's one thing Hook is right about," Blackbeard stated as he took a seat on a fallen log lying beside them while he pulled out his enemy's hook once again and handed it to Smee. "You can use this to do what you have to do. Be sure to use the brace so that you can hold it without getting yourself burnt. And Smee, make sure that it's really, really hot."

"How does it feel… being bested again?" Killian asked with as much strength as he could muster while he glared over at the pirate captain still sitting over him. "The Savior stole your power. Now you're back to… being as you've always been, a joke… of a captain."

Blackbeard angrily reached out and pushed down against the wound to hurt him as he responded cruelly, "That woman may have stolen the pendant from me, but she paid the price for thinking she could get away with trying to stop me. She's undoubtedly dead from that fall she took over the cliff's edge and into the rushing water below."

When the pirate let up and Hook could breathe through the pain again, he struggled to reply, "You still… underestimate her. She's not dead. I know it. You… will meet your demise, Captain. The Savior will see… to that."

"That may be so one day, Hook, but not before you return to Hell where you belong," the man holding him captive answered angrily as he swiftly grabbed the searing hot piece of metal away from the bumbling first mate, grabbing it by the brace attached to it, then swiftly pushed it against his enemy's wound with cruelty, gaining a great sense of pleasure and satisfaction upon hearing Hook scream out in agony as the scalding hook scorched his skin, burning the hole in his flesh closed.

"Smee, take care of him," Blackbeard said again when he finally finished with the cauterization, then watched as Hook slowly became unconscious once more. "I want you and some other men to build a travois that you lot will use to carry him on for when we get traveling again come morning."

The rat nodded and responded nervously, "Yes, Sir… Captain, Sir."

Deep within the Enchanted Forest…

A young woman ran within the ruins of what used to be a stone palace that had long since burned down in a great battle, having cut down her Sovereign's great power, making the woman half as powerful as she once was, and when the servant arrived within what remained of the great hall, she cried out, "Milady, Blackbeard has sent a few of his men in one of their ships with a message. The Captain has returned to Arendelle, with the man you need to open up the portal to the Underworld."

"So, the oaf actually succeeded?" the Enchantress replied in disbelief and with contempt for the foul man she was forced to align herself with in order to move forward with her plans. "I am surprise to say the least, but glad to know that my power wasn't fully wasted."

"If you would like… Shall I bring the pirates before you so that we might prepare to depart for Arendelle?" the young woman asked as the Sovereign stepped down from the throne upon which she sat, then walked with her over to the long mirror hanging on the wall a few feet away.

The Enchantress slowly waved her hand over her face as she transformed herself from a beautiful woman, into an old hag that was her disguise for whenever she left her home within the forest so as to not reveal her true form before those unworthy of seeing her true power. When finished, she did the same for her servant, making her appearance just as ugly.

The woman of great power turned to the younger woman and answered, "No, there is no need for you to bring them before me. We will not make our journey to Arendelle by the pirates' ship. I have enough magic to transport us there, as well as to sustain our appearances. If Blackbeard has truly fulfilled his half of our bargain by bringing me the right sacrifice and does not try to negotiate the deal between us, only then will I reveal myself to him and his men. Go and order the pirates to leave my land and if they refuse, tell them I will turn them into the worms that they are."

Her servant spoke again saying in compliance, "Yes, Milady."


	10. Chapter 10

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Ten

Within the hour, the royals of both Arendelle and Storybrooke, as well as their friends and the kingdom's guards, who were there for their leaders' protection for when the battle between them, this enchantress, and the pirates would inevitably begin, were all ready for the journey to find the rock trolls. When they arrived within half a mile of where the magical beings resided, Elsa ordered their guards to remain behind, while the Queen, her sister and her husband, Emma, Snow, Charming, and the rest of the visitors traveled the rest of the way.

"Grandpabbie, Bulda, are you here?" Kristoff called out anxiously as they entered the wide open space surrounded by rocks and boulders. "Cliff, where are you guys? We need your help. It's urgent!"

"We are here, Kristoff," the troll elder answered softly as he rolled out and revealed his true self before the visitors, as did the rest of the clan, and then turned to look up at the woman born from true love. "I can sense great power within you, my dear child. I also sense great sadness and fear. You are afraid for the man you love?"

Emma knelt down before him as she replied with fear in her voice, "A powerful being who calls herself the Enchantress plans to sacrifice him so that they can revive another soul long dead from the Underworld."

The elder reached up to the Savior's forehead in order to read her mind for the rest of the answers he sought, then bowed his head as he responded sadly, "I see. I am so very sorry, Emma Swan, Savior of two worlds."

"I cannot lose Killian again," Emma pleaded as the troll took her hand in his own. "He doesn't deserve to suffer for eternity. He isn't the man he once was."

"All sins can be forgiven when someone loves you," Grandpabbie answered gently.

Emma looked over at her parents, then turned back to the elder with surprise as she replied, "Killian said those exact words to me. He spoke of his past in hope of bringing me back to the light after I had given in to the darkness."

The troll nodded and responded, "A very powerful declaration indeed, and very true. Yet fate appears to want to destroy the love the two of you share, even if your one true love must suffer a fate that he no longer deserves."

"Surely we can change his fate," Snow stated obstinately. "We've all managed to change our own and though villains are not destined for happy endings where we come from, we've altered the rules time and time again, thanks to our daughter."

"And Hook too," Charming added. "If it wasn't for him, Emma would still be the Dark One and we would have lost her for good."

Anna spoke up saying, "Please, Grandpabbie. I have seen you do amazing things and you've always guided us in the right direction. Even when you were encouraging me to dump Hans for Kristoff, which was the best decision I've ever made."

Elsa nodded as she continued, "Emma and her family helped the three of us when we were trapped within Storybrooke. They helped me to find my sister, even when my fear got the better of me and I placed Emma in great danger when my powers grew out of control. We owe it to them to do the same. Surely there is something you can do to guide us to the portal?"

"The pendant given to this vile pirate captain by the Enchantress," Bulda said in answer as she rolled over to stand with the elder. "Do you still have it?"

"I've tried to will it to help me find him after I regained consciousness, just after we started on our trip here," Emma replied as she pulled the medallion from around her neck and held it out for the trolls to examine.

The elder troll enchanted it with his own magic as he responded, "That is because this enchantress has charmed it so that only Blackbeard can wield its power. Even now, it will do you no good, but to show you the path you must take to save Captain Hook."

Emma took the pendant back and then asked, "How can we ever repay you for your help?"

"I assure you, Savior, you have returned our Kristoff and Anna, as well as Arendelle's rightful ruler home," Grandpabbie answered. "Defeat the Enchantress and save the man you love. That is all the gratitude we need. But I warn you, be careful. The journey ahead of you will be a treacherous one."

"It can't be any worse than the troubles we've all come across already," Leroy replied, trying to sound confident for his brothers."

Bashful glared at Grumpy as he stated nervously, "You do realize that because you said so that…. that we're all jinx… jinxed now, right?"

Mary Margaret quickly responded, "Jinxed or not, we're going anyway. Thank you all again."

"It's about time," Leroy spoke again excitedly. "We're finally going to get to see some action!"

"I have one final question before we leave," Charming said as the dwarfs started back toward where the guards waited for them. "Do you have any idea who this Enchantress is or who she might be trying to resurrect?"

Bulda looked up at the Prince and answered, "Long ago, I heard of two powerful beings that lived deep within the Enchanted Forest, the woman born of a fairy and a King from another realm, and her husband born of elves. They were good…"

The elder troll continued, "…until the elf King died in a great battle and his wife lost hope in the good her magic did for others. She became angry when heroes and villains alike began to change their own stories, making her powers seem obsolete."

"The last time that she tried to use her powers for good, she had cursed a spoiled prince by transforming him into a beast in hope of teaching him a lesson, having foreseen a beautiful young woman falling in love with him if he could only learn to love another other than himself, her love for him being powerful enough to break the spell," another of the trolls replied. "But another monster changed their fates when she fell in love with him instead. Rumpelstiltskin stole the woman and rewrote their story, just as the Evil Queen did to most other inhabitants living within the Enchanted Forest. Now the Prince has been condemned to remain a beast for as long as he lives."

"Belle?" Emma asked skeptically. "You mean to say that this enchantress is the same enchantress from the Disney version of Beauty and the Beast? I suppose that makes sense. Why not?"

Mary Margaret stated, "It must be that she wants to bring her husband back from the Underworld. Emma said it herself, true love would be worth going against Hades for."

David nodded and responded, "That… and perhaps power, the kind of power to help this enchantress to change everyone's fates back to how she feels they were meant to be."


	11. Chapter 11

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Eleven

Inside the apprentice's manor…

After trying to reverse the magic that Rumpelstiltskin had used to blow the doorway to the realm where Elsa and her sister and husband were from for over an hour, Regina threw her hands up as she groaned angrily and said, "I give up! This is hopeless. The all-powerful Dark One's magic is far stronger than it ever was."

Mother Superior looked back at the Queen, then over at Belle who remained behind to help, then the Blue Fairy replied, "I hate to admit it, but Her Majesty is right. The portal is destroyed and not even both of our powers combined is enough. Getting home again will truly be up to Emma, Snow, and Prince David now."

"Maybe not," Robin called out as he entered the ballroom with his bow and quiver full of arrows upon his shoulders, as he and a few others had been out searching the town for any sign of Rumpelstiltskin after he disappeared. "I'm afraid that there's no sign of the monster, not even at his shop, but August and I happened to run into an old friend, who has finally returned from his long sabbatical. And just in the nick of time it seems."

"Hello," Anton responded as he and August, as well as Henry and the rest of the dwarfs walked in behind the archer. "It's good to be home, even if the real world is even more amazing than I ever thought possible."

Regina looked at the former giant skeptically as she asked, "You think he can help us? You'll forgive me if I don't seem to believe that, but unless you were able to grow more magic beans out within a world without magic, then I'm afraid…"

Anton interrupted, "Actually, you'd be surprised by the magic that's out in a world that claims to be without magic. I discovered a new way to grow the beans thanks to an education the humans call botany, or the study of plant life. Between all I know about growing and tending to the beans, as well as all the new stuff I've learned, I was able to grow a single stalk so far. It didn't produce more than three beans, but they're yours if you need them to save Emma and the others. I can grow more later on."

"This is incredible, Anton!" Henry exclaimed until he looked between him and his adopted mother in confusion. "But wait. That means someone is going to have to go to Arendelle and find them in order to get the remaining beans to them."

"I'll go," August stated immediately. "I've been waiting for this for awhile now. It's about time I do something to repay you all for helping me, back when I had turned into a man of wood and when you rescued me from the villains."

Robin looked over at the woman he loved, then he spoke up saying, "I'll go as well. I'm sorry, Regina. But you and I both know it's the right thing to do. Besides, August certainly can't go on his own. Who knows what trouble our friends are facing in this new world?"

The Queen nodded with frustration as she answered, "Of course, you're right, but I don't have to like it. And Henry, before you get any ideas and try to volunteer, the answer is no way in hell. After everything we all went through in the Underworld, I'm not ready to let you go anywhere outside of Storybrooke just yet."

"Don't worry, Mom," the young man replied as he smiled at her. "A part of me wants to help them, but even I'm not sure that I'm ready to leave home right now either."

"So, it seems like you're already well prepared," August said again as he looked over at Robin, motioning to the former thief's weapons of choice. "I'm not much of a warrior myself and so I'm not actually trained to handle any weapons, seeing as my state of remaining a real boy depends on me not getting into confrontations, but I can fight in hand to hand combat if necessary, so long as it's to defend our friends, right Blue?"

Mother Superior smiled at the man before her and responded, "You are remaining selfless, brave, and true by wanting to be there to help save others. So long as you remain so, no matter how you defend them is up to you."

August took the three beans from Anton when the man offered them to him, then answered smugly, "Excellent! Then I will go and find something to help us on our trek too. Why don't you meet me back at my shop in about twenty minutes, archer. That way, you can say goodbye to your lady and I can say goodbye to my papa."

"You're acting like you don't believe you're going to make it back?" Regina spoke again nervously. "If anything happens to Robin, so help me…"

"Don't worry, Your Majesty," the man who was also Pinocchio replied assuredly. "I promise you I will watch his back, the same as I know he'll do for me."

Meanwhile…

When a cloud of smoke emerged inside the pawnshop as Mr. Gold appeared from it, the Dark One suddenly collapsed to the ground as the pain from the marque Pan had given him in the Underworld manifested itself once again due to the villain using his magic, not only to blast the portal apart, but also to freeze his enemies, and to make himself vanish from the manor. Despite what the marque was trying to cost him, Rumpelstiltskin bit back the pain as he used magic to cast a cloaking spell upon himself, knowing full well that the heroes would look there for him first. When the pain finally passed, after remaining on the floor for longer than he should have, Gold finally stood and got to work searching through his books for a way to remove the brand his dear old father had cursed him with. As Robin Hood and one of the dwarfs with him came in moments later to look for him, Gold watched them both smugly as they searched both rooms, then left again within a few minutes, having no idea that the man they were looking for was right on top of them.


	12. Chapter 12

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Twelve

Meanwhile…

Several miles away from where the pirates were holding Hook prisoner, Emma, her parents and friends, Queen Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, Sven, and a small army of Arendelle's royal guards were trekking beneath the mountains, following the Savior's guidance as she led them on the path that the Enchantress' pendant set for them.

There wasn't much talking between them, except for the strange talking snowman, who really wouldn't stay quiet while he rode on top of Sven as he spoke with the three dwarfs riding a wagon alongside the reindeer, curious about everything in regards to Storybrooke. Sven pulled the sleigh being driven by Kristoff. Anna sat on the front with her husband, while Elsa and Emma rode in back as the Queen used her magic to guide it along the rocky terrain beneath them.

Behind them, David drove a wagon while his wife sat beside him, as Archie sat in the back along with most of their supplies. The guards were riding horses around their leaders and the newcomers to their kingdom, all keeping a close watch on their surroundings in case of danger.

As the darkness of night fell, the pace set amongst them became slower and their moods became more desolate as time passed. Emma hadn't said a word to anyone for awhile as she simply stared ahead of her, and no one spoke to her as they all understood the reason for her brooding.

However, when Emma suddenly gasped and hunched over in pain as she clutched her chest over her heart, Elsa immediately reached out to try to steady her close friend as she asked quickly, "Emma, what is it? Are you alright?"

Mary Margaret called out to her daughter as David immediately pulled their wagon up beside his friend's sled as she too asked worryingly, "Emma, what's wrong?"

"I don't… I'm fine," she responded with fear in her voice. "But Killian, he isn't. They're hurting him. I can feel it."

"Whoa, you weren't kidding about actually sharing a heart with him," Kristoff said in awe after he had pulled back on Sven's reins to bring the sled to a stop as he and Anna turned around to try to help Elsa guide Emma out. "But how?"

As Mary Margaret rushed to her daughter's side and helped her to find a place to sit upon the ground, David also dismounted and helped Anna down, then he turned to Kristoff as he answered, "I'm afraid that's another long story for another time, old friend."

It was then that the commander of the royal guards rode his horse up beside their Queen as he spoke up saying, "Your Highness, seeing as everyone's already stopped, we should set up camp and stay here for the night. It's grown too dark and the clouds in the sky have covered any light coming down on us from the stars and the moon."

"No, we can't stop now," Emma called out in frustration as she started to stand until Mary Margaret and Elsa managed to keep her from doing so, worried that she was working herself too hard. "We have to keep going."

"I'm afraid that I must insist, Miss. Swan," the man replied with more force. "I understand the urgency to find your husband, but we will be no good to him if we are too exhausted to fight these pirates you say have him, or if we get lost within these mountains and forest. This is treacherous terrain we're traveling through."

David looked down at his daughter sadly as he responded, "They're right, Emma. Don't worry, Blackbeard and his men surely have set up their own camp by now. They can't continue on any more than we can."

Emma glared between those surrounding her as she finally pushed away from her mother and the Queen and stood, then glared at David answering coldly, "You don't know that. Maybe you're okay with waiting until morning, but I'm not. Neither of you can possibly know how it feels to feel as someone you love suffers, while you're powerless to stop it. I'm going to go scout the path ahead so we'll be ready come morning. Just leave me the hell alone."

"She didn't mean what she just said," Mary Margaret stated after watching Emma walk off, then moved to stand beside David as she wrapped her arms around him to comfort him. "She is just scared. I'll go talk to her."

"No wait, let me go," Archie said as he turned to look between the Prince and Princess who led them. "Perhaps Emma will be more willing to talk to someone who isn't her own parents right now."

David nodded and replied, "You're right. Thank you, Archie."

The cricket smiled despondently as he responded, "This is exactly why I've come along. I just want to be of help."

As the sun began to rise…

It wasn't long after the pirates had finished building a fire and set up their camp, that an old woman hidden beneath the large, filthy cloak she wore walked in between them all without fear, followed by another woman close behind her. Upon their arrival, as the first ignored the men surrounding them while she walked over and knelt down beside their unconscious prisoner, Blackbeard stood up and started toward her with his cutlass raised until the other stepped in his way.

"You won't harm us," the hag spoke up firmly. "We won't harm you."

"Who are you?" the pirate captain asked coldly, not knowing that one of these women was the Enchantress in disguise. "You will leave here now, if you value your lives, or I will have my men take you into this God forsaken jungle, where they will throw you off the cliff we passed overlooking the river."

The woman smiled smugly as she continued, "You will do no such thing. We work for the same woman."

The other old hag slowly began to trace her fingers gently along the large scar across Killian's chest made by Excalibur, then did the same to the magical blade's second wound along the left side of his neck and she finally stated softly, "At last. It appears you have truly succeeded in bringing the right man, Captain."

"I gave the Enchantress my word that I could deliver her anything it is she wishes me to procure for her," Blackbeard answered smugly, staring at the woman kneeling over his enemy with confusion. "As I asked before, who are you and why have you come here? The Enchantress assured me she would meet us at the portal to the Underworld herself."

"Have you the pendant given to you still?" she asked coolly, ignoring the man's continued inquest.

He finally lowered and sheathed his sword, realizing these women were of no threat to them any longer, then he replied, "Hook wasn't alone when my men and I caught up to him. He was with his wife, who also so happens to be the Savior, whom I am sure the Enchantress has heard of. That blonde witch stole the pendant from me just before she tried to escape with our prisoner. We were able to retrieve Hook, but she died as she fell off the very cliff I threatened to have you thrown off of herself, fell right into the falls and drown."

The Enchantress slowly healed the wound caused from the musket ball fired by a pirate's pistol while she transformed herself back into the beauty she truly was, then she rose and looked back at the man who gawked at her in surprise, as well as fear, and responded, "The Savior isn't dead, Captain Blackbeard. If she were, then so would he be also. They each share a half of the Savior's heart. Seeing as he still lives, which is lucky for you, then so does she. I should punish you for your careless treatment of my very special prisoner, but you have done what it is I needed most. Fail me again, and I will not be so kind."

"Forgive me, Milady," Blackbeard answered nervously as he moved around the servant, who also returned to her true self, then knelt down before the powerful being. "I meant no disrespect. I did not expect you to come to us so soon."

"Should it matter whether I am a beautiful and powerful enchantress or a hag?" she asked with anger, knowing that the pirate really meant he didn't expect to be confronted by her other form. "The last man who disrespected me while disguised as an old woman got turned into a hideous beast and is now living with the agony of knowing that if he had just been kind enough to take a rose I offered him, then he would have remained the man he once was."

Killian slowly began to wake while he reached down to where he had been shot before and upon feeling no pain where the cauterized wound should have been, he struggled to sit up until he stopped moving upon seeing Blackbeard, his, men, and a woman he could only guess was his enemy's employer, still surrounding him.

The Enchantress looked at the other pirates as she ordered, "Bind him. I will not have him loose, to be free to try to escape again."

Hook glared at her as he asked weakly, "Why are you doing this? I know I don't deserve the second chance at life I was given, but if you kill me, you will also kill a woman with even more power than even you possess; a Savior, who is sorely needed in these worlds."

"This woman matters not to me," the Enchantress replied cruelly. "I have grown tired of my gifts always being ruined by those who believe themselves powerful enough to rewrite their destinies. After the Evil Queen cast most of those living within the Enchanted Forest away within her dark curse to try to change her fate, as well as everyone else's, I knew it was time I did something to make everything right. I just needed to find someone who has died and been to the Underworld, then was brought back to life. That is where you come in, Killian Jones. When I received a gift from Hades from within the Underworld, a message that the person I seek lives inside a magical town surrounded by a land without magic, I found someone to work for me who could pass from this world into yours to find you. You are truly special, as you will help me return everything to the way it was meant to be. By resurrecting my husband from the Underworld, together we will be powerful enough to do so."

"No matter how powerful you are, witch, you will not succeed," Hook responded with confidence, ignoring his fear that Hades wanted him back, and has found someone in this domain, able to return him to the God of the dead. "The Savior will stop you."

Blackbeard laughed at Hook's vigorous belief in the Savior's power as Killian was grabbed by his men and bound again while Hook glared at the other captain, then turned back to the enchantress as she answered, "The woman you love will try to stop me. But she will fail, as will those who have come from your world to try to save you. If they must die for me to bring the man I love back from the Underworld, then so be it. Their lives are of no consequence to me, as yours is not."

Killian replied, "I know Emma. And I know her family. If you keep on this path, you will surely join your husband and Hades will be sorely disappointed that you failed him."


	13. Chapter 13

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Thirteen

While leaving everyone else within the rescue party behind to set up their camp for the night, Archie walked cautiously in the direction he had seen the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming disappear in. He found her ten minutes later, using a sword to hack angrily at the overgrown shrubs and weeds hanging down along the path their expedition would be traveling come morning. It wasn't the first time the doctor had seen this kind of anger in someone, but this frightened him just the same.

"If you've come to talk to me at my parents' request, you can turn around and head right back to the camp," she suddenly said coldly without bothering to quit her task at hand. "I told them, I'm not in the mood to talk, not even to you."

"I didn't actually come here by their request," he answered calmly, taking no offense to the harshness in her words. "I came here, because I see someone in a lot of pain, a very good friend."

Still refusing to look back, Emma responded, continuing to cut through the undergrowth before her, "I'm not the one who's in pain. Killian is, and I'm not doing a damn thing to help him."

Archie stayed back, mostly out of fear of getting hit by the blade, as he replied compassionately, "You're wrong, Emma. You're here in Arendelle and you've managed to gather together a small army, as well as two groups of royals to save Hook. Just because we can't continue on tonight…"

"It isn't just that!" she interrupted out of anger, geared more to herself than to him, when she finally stopped swinging her blade and began to pace back and forth before the psychiatrist after he took a seat on a fallen log nearby, as she began to rant. "It's all of it. This, and everything else he's been through ever since I made the choice to save Regina and became the Dark One. I know I made the right decision to save her, so that she wouldn't become the woman she fought so hard to destroy again, but it's also because of that decision that Hook has suffered and was forced down to the Underworld. When he and the others followed me to Camelot, Killian fought constantly to keep me from going dark, and again once we returned to Storybrooke. He risked his life to save my family and because he was struck by Excalibur in doing so, he died. But I couldn't live with that, so of course I turned him into a Dark One in order to save him. He begged me not to, told me he was afraid he wouldn't be strong enough to fight against the darkness because he was weak, but I didn't listen. I couldn't. I could only think about my own pain, the pain of losing him. I knew it was wrong, but I still did it anyway. And it saved him… then, but that choice only led to his death anyway and it was far worse, for him and for me. I had to stand by and watch as he absorbed all of the darkness within the sword while he strained heavily against its power. I had to drive that damn sword, straight through his chest as he gasped in agony because he begged me to save myself and my family, knowing damn well he was going to end up in the Underworld. His last thought was to protect me, even after all I did to hurt him. He suffered, far more than I know he's telling me. And now… now, after we got him back and brought him home… Archie, he was finally beginning to get better and this had to happen! All of this, is my fault!"

"You may think so, but it sounds to me that every decision that you made since taking the darkness into yourself for Regina, was made out of love," the doctor answered sadly. "I can't really talk much about the things Hook… Killian and I have discussed in our appointments, but I can tell you that he forgave you for forcing the darkness into him. He knew it was because you loved him so much. Truthfully, I think that a small a part of him is even flattered. There were times when he used to be unsure whether or not you really did love him."

Emma finally sat down on the log beside the man of conscience and then responded quietly, "I do, so much more than I have ever loved anyone; Neal, Graham, and Walsh, even if he did turn out to be a flying monkey who tried to kill me. I never thought it was possible. I don't know how he got me to let him in, but somehow… he always knew that I would one day. He told me so when we were in Neverland. I had put up wall after wall from having my heart broken so many times and he was able to break through every single one of them. I found true love and we were married. Marriage was never something I thought I would have, but we did, because of Killian. And now, now I'm at risk of losing him again. He won't survive having to go into the Underworld a second time. He barely survived the first time and he's still hardly recovered, nearly eight months later."

Archie reached out and gently placed a hand over her knee as he looked into her eyes while he replied, "That won't happen. Do you want to know why I know that?"

"Why?" she asked eagerly.

"Because, you're the Savior," he answered simply. "And you are Emma Swan, who is brilliant at getting everyone their happy endings. Yours and Killian's might be taking far longer for it to come, but neither one of you will quit. I've seen it, and so haven't everyone else living in Storybrooke. Besides, not only do you have each other to help you through this painful stage in your life, but you also have a family and friends who love you both, including me."

Emma looked at the doctor as he stood up and began to walk away, then she swiftly called out, "Thank you, Archie."

He smiled and stated, "You're welcome, Miss. Swan."

After the doctor, who was also a cricket, walked out of sight, Emma looked down at her hands between his ring on her finger and the sword that once belonged to Neal, which Killian had given to her out of kindness and respect. Then, she thought back to the words he had said to her that made her realize Captain Hook was far more than what she initially believed him to be, a man she could see herself wanting to help become the real man buried deep down inside of him, a man with whom she could see a glimpse of the possibility of a future together.

 _"I assumed he'd heard my secret," he spoke almost regretfully after Neal walked away from them in the forest of Neverland. "And I also assumed that you'd told him of our shared moment."_

 _"Why would you assume that?" Emma asked in confusion as she looked at the pirate in frustration._

 _Hook looked at her with a yearning in his eyes as he responded, "Because I was hoping it meant something."_

 _She quickly replied sincerely, "What meant something was that you told us Neal was still alive. Thank you. I realized you could've kept Pan's information to yourself."_

 _"Why would I have done that?" he asked curtly._

 _"I don't know," the blonde answered hesitantly. "Maybe Pan offered you a deal? Why else would he tell you?"_

 _Disdainfully, though the disdain was geared toward himself, not at the woman standing in front of him, Hook responded, "It was a test. He wanted to see if I'd leave an old friend to die... even if the old friend happens to be vying for the same woman that I am."_

 _Emma looked at him with surprise as she said, "And you chose your friend."_

 _"Does that surprise you?" he asked._

 _"You are a pirate." Emma replied in a sardonic tone._

 _Killian felt the shame once again while he looked down for a moment until he raised his head and moved closer to her with a strong confidence as he answered, "Yeah, that I am. But I also believe in good form. So when I win your heart, Emma... and I will win it... it will not be because of any trickery. It will be because you want me."_

 _She looked at like he was joking as she stated, "This is not a contest, Hook."_

 _"Isn't it?" he quickly retorted. "You're gonna have to choose, Emma. You realize that, don't you? Because neither one of us is gonna give up."_

 _"The only thing I have to choose is the best way to get my son back." Emma responded in frustration as she glared at him._

 _Hook looked deeper into her eyes as he replied assuredly, "And you will."_

 _She quickly asked, "You think so?"_

 _"I have yet to see you fail," Killian finally said and then smiled smugly. "And when you do succeed... well, that's when the fun begins."_

"Archie's right," Emma softly muttered to herself out loud as she stood up again and then started walking back to where her family and friends were waiting for her to return. "I know that you won't give up me, and I sure as hell won't give up on you. We will survive this too, just as we have always done."


	14. Chapter 14

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Fourteen

After traveling on foot for miles through the forest and rocky terrain, Blackbeard and his men, the Enchantress and her own servant, as well as their prisoner, who was being pulled along among his captors while bound, his arms once again tied to the staff over his shoulders behind his head, they all finally arrived at a pool of water at the foothill of the tallest mountain within Arendelle, the shimmering brook leading deep into a dark cave that only revealed itself as the Enchantress bent down and dipped a single finger into the water.

"So, this is it?" Blackbeard asked, seeming to be unimpressed by the cloaking spell that had hidden the portal into the Underworld within this realm. "This is what we have traveled all this way to find? I would have thought it to be far more ominous."

"Do not underestimate the portal's appearance," the servant replied as the Enchantress rose again and slowly walked over to stand before Hook, who didn't say a word as he glared coldly at the beautiful, powerful sorceress in front of him while struggling within the pirates' grasp.

She smiled at him as she spoke again asking demurely, "How does it feel, Killian, to know that you are the only hero who will finally allow me to resurrect my husband and reset the mistakes of your so called Savior and the Evil Queen who tried to destroy everything that we are?"

He continued to look into her eyes and with venom in his voice he answered, "If you really want to know what I think, it's that the term hero has been used far too loosely. I'm not yours, just as I was never theirs."

"Your modesty and bravery are most alluring, as are your handsome features," the Enchantress whispered as she leaned in closer so that her lips were nearly touching his, while she traced her fingers along them as though she longed to kiss him. "These are traits you certainly share with my husband. I am truly grateful that you are the man I have been looking for all these years. He will be most pleased…"

"They're coming!" one of Blackbeard's men suddenly shouted as he came running up from behind the rest of the pirates surrounding them, causing everyone to turn in the man's direction. "That woman and her own small army are right on top of us! They're coming for Hook."

Killian laughed with a hint of relief behind it, then he looked back at the magical being still in front of him as he responded proudly, "It is as I warned you, you have underestimated her."

She smiled and replied with assurance, "You're wrong, Captain. I always expected that she would come to try to save you. However, no matter how many friends Emma Swan might have with her, or how hard she tries to stop me, your wife will fail, of that I am certain. Captain Blackbeard, order your men to attack the invaders. Don't worry, they are not as outnumbered as they appear. Tell the men to kill them all if they must, but one warning, Captain. If the Savior is killed in the battle, then we will fail. She is not to be harmed, only captured and brought here to me. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Enchantress," the other pirate captain answered while she stepped to the edge of the hill they stood upon to observe the army coming toward them, then he relayed the orders as she commanded him. "You heard her men! Stop them however you must, but bring the Savior to me!"

"Sir, would you mind if I remained here, with you and our employer, the Enchantress, I mean?" Smee spoke up asking nervously as he quickly reached out to take over for one of the other pirates holding onto Hook, while the other took off to join his mates in the fight. "I not much of a fighter, as you know."

Blackbeard looked at him and answered, "Yes, Mr. Smee, of course. I know, you're a collector of rare objects. Besides, you did make it so that we could find our enemy. Consider this your reward."

The Enchantress walked back to stand in front of Killian again and used her magic to undo his bindings as the thick ropes gave way and the staff fell to ground, while the two pirates still holding him quickly adjusted their hold on him. Hook struggled against their hold when the servant pulled a small dagger out from beneath her robe and handed it to the being she worshiped. The Enchantress grabbed her captive's hand roughly within her own as she slashed the blade over his palm, then forced him down to his knees at the pool's edge with the men's help while holding his hand out as his blood dripped from the laceration and into the water below, opening the portal and summoning the boatman.

The woman leaned in close to his ear as she kissed his cheek in a passionate manner, then whispered once more, "Your Savior is too late, Captain. Soon, my husband will inhabit your body and your soul will once again be damned to the Underworld, where Hades will welcome you with open arms."

In the meantime…

Down below from where the portal within this realm resided, the guards of Arendelle approached with Queen Elsa and Emma in the front, followed closely by Anna, Kristoff, and the Savior's family and friends. Emma stared down at the pendant in her hands and when the glowing that led her to where they stood stopped, she knew they were close. It was a few seconds later when Blackbeard's pirates began to charge toward them from above, confirming her conclusion that they had indeed arrived.

"Pirates!" the commander of the royal guard shouted loudly to get his men's attentions geared to their charge. "Get ready! Fight with everything you have and take as many prisoners as possible!"

"This is it," Elsa quickly stated as she turned to Emma before the battle began. "Are you ready?"

The blonde woman looked at her nervously as she raised her sword, as did Anna and David, while Kristoff raised his ax, then she responded, "I'm ready to get my husband back. I want to thank you, all of you. I never would have gotten here if it wasn't for you."

She quickly looked back at the dwarfs who stood nearby as they also prepared for the attack, then to Archie and immediately yelled, "Grumpy, you, Happy, and Bashful need to protect Archie! Don't let anything happen to him!"

"Don't you worry about us, sister!" Leroy replied eagerly as he and his brothers quickly surrounded the doctor to do as she asked of them, while Archie nodded to Emma, indicating for her to be careful, which she understood. "You go save Hook. We've got these guys!"

"We're right behind you," David said to his daughter and swiftly struck down one of the pirates as he charged at him, then another who tried to kill Mary Margaret as he tried sneaking up behind his wife.

Emma ran her sword through another of the villains, then she nodded at them and answered, "Good. Follow my lead."

The battle had begun between the heroes from both realms and the pirates that worked for the vile captain, Blackbeard. At first, it appeared as though the sides were evenly matched in numbers, but because the Savior and Else both had magic, the pirates slowly began to become outnumbered as they feared they would.

Emma just finished firing a burst of power at a group of their enemies to push them back as they started to charge her, Anna, and Kristoff, when all of a sudden, two more pirates snuck up on her and pulled her arms back tightly behind her to keep her from doing the same to them, also causing her to drop her sword. Kristoff saw this and ran to try to help her until one of the pirates he believed he had just cut down had risen back to his feet and started to attack him once again.

While they fought, the Ice Master asked in frustration, "How is it that you're still… alive? I thought I killed you."

"Kristoff!" Anna shouted as she rushed forward to help him until she was shoved backward as she came against two more warriors, also already having been cut down. "What is going on? These pirates are multiplying."

"It's the Enchantress' power!" Elsa called out as she froze the pirates trying to hurt her sister, then blasted another pirate back in a gust of icy wind. "She's enchanted Blackbeard's men to try to defeat us."

David and Mary Margaret both rushed over to help them as he responded quickly, "The only way this fight is going to end, is if we stop the Enchantress. Have you seen Emma?"

At the portal…

No matter how futile his fight was, Killian still struggled against Smee's and the other pirate's hold on him, especially as the fog rolled in and Charon appeared in the distance, then as the boatman drew closer, Hook was suddenly swept backward by an invisible force from the Enchantress' hand, knocking him painfully against the base of the mountain, a few feet away from the cave's entrance.

When she was directly in front of him once again, she roughly grabbed him by his chin, and pushed her lips against his in a deep kiss until she pulled back as dark magic suddenly flowed from her mouth and rose up to surround him until it finally entered into his body through his mouth and eyes. The energy still holding him up finally faded as Killian collapsed back to the ground and struggled against the strange power forced into him. After several moments, he slowly rose to his feet and stood straight as he opened his eyes, revealing the rings around his pupils now to be glowing bright blue in color, rather than them being the pale blue his irises were before.

As Smee stared in shock at his former captain while Hook remained standing in place, staring blankly ahead at nothing, he asked nervously, "What's wrong with him?"

"She has put Hook under some sort of spell it seems," Blackbeard replied gleefully. "A trance to get him to obey her commands. I've seen this kind of magic before. Why, Enchantress, did you not put him under your spell when you first came into our camp? Bringing him here would have been much easier."

"Because, my magic can only control someone against his will for a short amount of time," she answered as she stumbled backward, having strained herself after using far too much of her power at once. "I am weak. If I were at my full strength, I would have."

When the two pirates that had managed to capture Emma came up over the hill and brought the Savior closer to Captain Blackbeard and Smee, she finally saw her husband standing still before the Enchantress, while the sorceress came closer to him and gently moved her hand along the side of his face. He didn't flinch and when Emma saw his eyes were glowing, she understood why.

Emma cried out, "Killian! What the hell did you do to him?"

The Enchantress turned her head to look at the blonde woman as she responded, "It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Savior. Your reputation perceives you."

"Yeah, I've heard that before," Emma replied coldly. "Whatever you've done to him, so help me…"

"I am not much for threats, Miss. Swan," the sorceress interrupted angrily. "Your husband is now under my complete control. You would be proud to know that he tried to fight against me and these pirates all this time. But at the end of it all, I have beaten you. Captain Hook, go with Charon. Find Hades. Bring me back my own love."

Emma struggled to break free, even more so as Killian obeyed the woman's order and began to walk toward the boatman, but they held firm as Blackbeard walked over to them and grabbed her roughly by her hair, pulling her head around to face him. He smiled smugly and was about to kiss her when all of a sudden, two more men came charging toward them riding some strange, loud contraption on wheels that neither of the pirates had ever seen before except for Smee, who shouted out a warning to his captain, telling him to get down.

Emma watched in awe as Robin Hood swiftly fired two arrows, one right after the other, at the two pirates still holding onto his friend, just as Blackbeard fell back out of the archer's aim, then jumped off the back of August's motorcycle to stand before the pirate captain, prepared to fight him in combat, however the man chose. He pulled a second cutlass from his person, and swiftly tossed it to the archer, who accepted the weapon, lowered his bow and arrows to the ground, then began the duel between them.

As soon as she was free, Emma quickly picked up her sword, which the pirates had brought with them, then dropped as they were killed, and attempted to race to Killian, until the servant stood in her way and began to fight her with her own blade. The Enchantress kept her gaze on Hook, who was nearly to the boat, until he was suddenly stopped by the other intruder, the same man controlling the vehicle that charged into the clearing moments ago.

The man quickly pulled off his helmet to reveal himself, then looked worryingly at his friend as he held him by his shoulders and upon seeing that he was under a spell, August spoke up saying worryingly, "Okay, uh… well, don't worry, Captain. We're just going to get you back to Emma and she's going to fix this. All right?"

The Enchantress called out cruelly, "Hook, you will kill the man in front of you. You must stop him!"

"No, Killian, you really don't want to do this," August answered when the captain reached for a dagger tucked inside his long coat he wore, then immediately slashed the blade at his friend's arm to push him back away from him. "Dang it. I don't want to hurt you. Look, my bike was really the only thing I brought here with me. I didn't feel right about carrying a weapon of my own. It's not my style."

"Hook, come on," he continued as the pirate charged him again with surprising skill and speed and shoved August back against the cave wall, then shoved the knife up to his throat, while August fought to keep him from finishing the deed. "You're stronger than she is! Please, I know you're in there somewhere."

The powerful being stepped into the pool of water as she slowly approached the two men upon seeing that the power she had over Hook was beginning to falter and just when she was about to reinforce the spell, a sword suddenly plunged into her back and through her chest, causing the Enchantress to gasp in pain, though she didn't collapse to the ground right away even though her legs threatened to buckle. She turned around to see Emma, who had defeated her servant by forcing her back against a tree to knock her out, standing on the water's edge while the Savior's hands were raised in the air wielding the blade at her will as she swiftly pulled her sword back to her from the villain's chest.

As soon as the powerful sorceress fell in death without so much as a word, the enchantment she had over Killian disappeared as he gasped and closed his eyes tightly against the pain in his head, then started to fall back to the ground himself until August reached out and pulled him into his arms. Emma ran to them and took most of her husband's weight upon herself as they worked together to bring him back to the shore. Before she could take care of him, she quickly looked back at Charon, who slowly began to row away again, taking the soul of the Enchantress with him to escort her down into the Underworld, instead of the man whom the dark creature had come for.

After finally knocking Blackbeard back and down to his knees, the pirate glared up at the archer, who firmly struck him in the head with the hilt of the cutlass given to him to knock him out as well, then Robin rushed over to join his friends as he asked worryingly, "How is he? Is he…?"

Emma allowed tears to fall from her eyes as she pulled Killian close and held his head against her chest, then with fear in her voice she responded, "I don't know. He was shot last night, but I don't see any wound."

"Not to mention the fact that he almost killed me just now after wrestling me back against the rocks and forced a blade to my throat," August added while he gently laid his hand over Killian's forehead upon noticing that he was sweating, then pulled the collar of his jacket and shirt down further and noticed the sheen of sweat that also covered his body. "He may not be wounded anymore, but he is burning up. Everything he's been through has obviously taken a hell of a toll on him."

"We need to get him to someplace where he can recover before we all go home," Robin replied as he started to get up again until Emma quickly reached out to grab his arm to stop him a moment.

She looked into his eyes as she pleaded sadly, "Can you go check on my family, and Elsa and her family for me? They were fighting the rest of Blackbeard's men. There was a spell put on them too, but it should be gone, now that she's… dead."

Robin nodded as he answered, "Of course. When I find your parents, I'll send them to you."

"Thank you, Robin," she responded sincerely, then tightened her grip on Hook worryingly as she quickly looked down at him, then turned her eyes to August. "How is it you got here anyway, and with your bike no less? Why?"

"Because, the moment that your parents left through the portal, Gold managed to escape by forcing everyone to take cover when he blew up the doorway here to Arendelle," the man who was once made of wood replied. "We were afraid that you wouldn't be able to find a way back and as luck would have it, Anton's returned to Storybrooke, having found a new way to grow more magic beans. When it's time, we'll be prepared."

Emma laid her head gently over Killian's and then answered, "We first need to find out where Blackbeard docked the Jolly Roger. We're not leaving here without her. She'll be how we get back home."

August looked at Emma with surprise as he responded, "You talk as though the Jolly Roger's a woman."

"In a lot of ways, she is," the blonde stated. "She was the only thing that mattered to him other than getting his revenge on Gold after his first love died. His ship was the only thing he could ever depend on and she makes him feel calm, gives him comfort. I would sail the world with Killian on the Jolly Roger if he asked me to."

"Someday you'll have that chance, Emma," he replied sincerely as he gently began to stroke the back of her head.

It was then that her parents, as well as Robin, Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf came running up over the hill and raced to Emma, Hook, and August worryingly upon seeing that their friend was once again lying ill within his wife's arms. The battle was finally over and the heroes had once again prevailed, but the cost was great. Killian wasn't the only one who had suffered from this fight. A large number of the royal guards were killed, as well as injured, Kristoff had taken musket ball to his arm, Snow had been struck over the back of her head, but was luckily saved by Robin as he ran down to help them, and David had received a knife wound in his shoulder.

Mary Margaret was the first to reach her daughter as she asked fearfully, "Emma, are you alright?"

The Savior looked into her eyes as she whispered, "I'm not really, but what about you? Mom, are you okay, and Dad?"

"I'm just a little bit dizzy, that's all," Snow answered as Emma reached up to feel the back of her head upon seeing the blood dripping down along the side of her neck. "Your father's fine too."

"Your mother's right," Charming quickly responded as he looked at his shoulder. "It's not as bad as it looks. What happened here?"

Emma quickly looked over at the Enchantress' body lying within the pool of water in the distance and over at Blackbeard's prone form still lying on the ground a few feet away, as well as the servant's still lying out cold at the base of the tree, then allowed August and Robin to take Killian from her as they lifted him and started to carry him back toward Kristoff's sled, while the Ice Master and Anna guided them down the hill just as Archie and the dwarfs came up to check on their friends.

Emma stood with David's help and then she replied coldly, "I killed the witch. She left me no choice. She had Killian under some kind of spell. If I hadn't, he would have killed August, then would have walked right into Charon's boat against his will. I almost lost him, again. The others are unconscious. And it looks like Smee got away again. He must have ran off while we were all too distracted to notice."

Mary Margaret sighed, then answered, "That's okay. I'm sure we'll come across Mr. Smee against some time in the future."

"Elsa, back when you guys were in Storybrooke, you told us that the rock trolls have the ability to alter memories," Emma said worryingly upon her mother using the word, future, as she turned to look over at her friend.

"Yes, that's right," the Queen responded in confusion, while everyone else looked over at the Savior in the same way.

David quickly cut in, "Emma, if you're thinking about taking away Hook's or even your memories of all that's happened to him… You know how bad the consequences for erasing memories can be."

Emma turned to him as she replied, "Yes I do. I'm not doing that, as much as I might want to. I learned my lesson, believe me. What I mean is, your mother, Elsa, made it so that your entire kingdom and all of the other kingdoms wouldn't remember that Ingrid or your other aunt ever existed. Do you think the trolls can do the same kind of magic for us? I can't take the chance that someone else will come for Killian again. Can they make it so that no one will ever know Killian died and returned from the Underworld, other than those of us in Storybrooke? Killian's a hero. Some people need to remember that."

"Yes, I suppose they could," Elsa answered.

"Actually, I think that's a great idea," Mary Margaret responded confidently. "We'll make sure that he's safe, Emma. He will be."


	15. Chapter 15

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Fifteen

In Storybrooke…

"We've looked everywhere for Gold and he's nowhere to be found," Regina said in frustration after she and the others searching for the villain had been all over the town in doing so. "But there's no way he would have been able to cross the town line."

"No, but he could be using a cloaking spell to conceal himself," Belle responded as she stared ahead at window of her former husband's shop from where she sat at a table outside of Granny's diner, as she, Regina, and Henry had come to take a break after a long afternoon. "I bet he's over there."

Henry looked at her with confusion as he replied, "But how can he do that? I mean, Pan cursed him with that marque that causes him pain every time he uses magic. If he's hiding using a cloaking spell…"

Regina scoffed and then answered, "He's Rumpelstiltskin. I certainly wouldn't put anything past him. It will be a cold day in hell before he stops using magic, even if it puts him at death's door."

"You know what?" the Queen stated again after she paused for a moment to think when a thought suddenly came to her. "I'll bet you he's busy trying to find a way to get that marque removed, in which case, he would definitely be searching all of his old books."

"And if he succeeds, he'll be free to use all the magic he wants and will most likely try to punish our entire town for trapping him for eight months inside both Pandora's Box and his cell beneath the library," Belle responded worryingly, then paused when she remembered something from a long time ago. "Unless…"

Henry quickly looked at his mom, then back at Belle as he swallowed what he was eating and asked, "Unless what?"

Belle suddenly stood and took off out of the diner, while Regina and Henry both followed after her while she replied, "I cannot believe I didn't think of this earlier, but then again, a lot has happened between now and then."

"Remember what?" Regina impatiently asked again as the younger woman swiftly led them toward the library.

"There's this book I once read, a long time ago before the first curse over us was broken," she continued as they walked inside. "It was more of someone's journal really, that read like a memoir. I never knew then what it was or who wrote it, but in it, there was what I thought was a poem, but it turns out I think it's more of a chant or a spell of some kind. If I remember it right, I think it could have the power to summon something, or someone, to you, no matter where or how they're hidden."

Henry started looking through the books on the shelves nearby where the woman once in love with the monster they were trying to defeat led them, as he asked, "Wait, are you saying that you can summon someone as powerful as the Dark One right here to us?"

Belle scanned the books as well, not exactly remembering where it was she had stashed the book while she answered, "I suppose so, or at least I hope so. The question is, if we can, what will we do with him? The prison may still hold him, but eventually, Rumple will find a way to escape. I am certain of it."

"Actually, instead of just calling the Dark One to us, we can summoned them both," Regina responded smugly. "If this spell really is legit, if we can even find it, then we can use his dagger against him like we've done before, to control Rumpelstiltskin long enough for us to figure out how it is we want to deal with him once and for all. Let's just hope that the dagger still controls him. When Emma made Excalibur whole again with the dagger, it no longer controlled her or Hook. Excalibur was destroyed when Hook sacrificed himself, but we still don't know the kind of magic Gold used on the sword beforehand. For all we know, it could be just like any other dagger."

"Wait, is this the book you were talking about, Belle?" Henry asked as he suddenly became drawn to a section of books, hearing a whisper coming from an old book mixed among the rest as he pulled the book down from the shelf and began to scan through its pages.

Belle lifted it enough to get a look at its cover and nodded, while Regina stared nervously at her son as she asked, "Henry, are you okay? What's going on?"

He finally came a page within the book as he stopped and replied, "This is another of Isaac's books. Even older than our book of fairytales. Rumpelstiltskin must have been the first story he ever wrote. I think that this spell is a failsafe against the Dark One, should he ever have needed it if he ever escaped the page where the apprentice trapped him within."

"Henry, have I ever told you you're a genius?" Regina asked as she ruffled his hair.

"At least once a day, Mom," Henry answered as she hugged him, then pulled back as he looked closer at the spell. "I think I can translate this spell for us, but it's going to take a few ingredients, not to mention a safe place for us to cast it."

The Queen smiled as she responded, "Luckily for us, my vault will have exactly what we need, I think. But one question still remains. Even if we can bring the dagger and then Gold to us, what are we going to do with him? Belle's right. His prison cell won't hold him forever and we can't risk him escaping again."

Belle thought for a minute and then replied, "Actually, I think I know exactly what we can do with him."

Within the hour, the three of them, as well as Mother Superior, who had joined them in order to assist her friends in the capture of their enemy, were gathered together again inside Regina's vault and were finishing up with preparing the ritual as Henry poured a magic oil, mixed with special herbs by the Queen, around in a large circle on the floor. When he finished, Belle and the Blue Fairy both double checked to make sure everything was prepared properly once Henry had translated the words Isaac had written within the book's pages.

"It's time," Blue said. "If this works, Rumpelstiltskin will hopefully never again be a problem to us and our town."

"On second thought, maybe this isn't such a good idea," Belle spoke up again nervously as she thought over their plan.

Regina moved to stand in front of the young woman as she answered, "If you recall, this was your idea. You wanted him gone, but you also wanted it to be done humanely. This is our best option. Personally, I think it's too good for him."

Belle looked into the Queen's eyes as she responded, "Maybe so, but it's still better than anything else we've been able to come up with. Okay, let's get this over with. I'm ready."

Henry handed his seconded mother the book and without hesitation, she began the spell inside her mind, concentrating on the circle before her and within moments, the oil caught fire, the Dark One dagger appeared within Belle's hands, finally, the villain appeared in cloud a black smoke within the flames.

"Belle?" Rumple stated with shock upon looking around at where he was and who was standing before him. "How did you…? What have you done?"

"I'm trying to save us all from whatever it is you've got planned, Rumple," she replied sadly. "And this is the only way we know how to do it, without you suffering as you would have us do if the situation was reversed."

He glared between the women as well as Henry while he answered, "Whatever it is you have done, these flames will not be able to hold me for long. I am the Dark One. The most powerful Dark One there has ever been, including that of Miss. Swan and her pirate. Belle, I was close to ridding myself of this marque. And then together you and I could have left this town and lived a wonderful life out within the world."

Tears came to her eyes as Belle responded, "And that's exactly what will happen, but you won't have your powers any longer. At least you won't know that you have your powers. Within minutes, this circle of fire surrounding you will strip you of the monster that you've become and what will be left will be the man I once loved. You'll have a whole new set of memories, just as your dark curse did to all of us. When this is over, you won't remember Rumpelstiltskin or Storybrooke, but you will remember your love for me, though not second to the darkness inside of you."

"Belle's right," Regina spoke up for her when Belle couldn't continue on. "It's better than you deserve, but then again… I suppose it's ironic that this should be your fate. Oh, and your dagger will remain here with us, should you actually come to remember the beast within one day."

"No Belle, please don't do this!" the evil man before them pleaded as he weakly collapsed to his knees when he began to feel whatever magic was being cast over him. "I know that I've lost you, but I cannot live within a world where I have nothing."

Belle replied, "You won't have nothing, Rumple."

A few minutes later, Mr. Gold was standing across the town line as he looked around him in confusion upon finding himself all alone, then called out in confusion, "Hello! Is anyone there?"

"Of course, I'm right here," a young woman answered kindly as she walked up to him from behind.

"There you are," he responded as he slowly limped his way over to the beauty who was his wife, his cane in hand. "Where have you been? I was worried about you."

She leaned in close and kissed his lips and when she pulled back she replied, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you. Don't you remember? Our car ran out of gas less than a mile down the road. We started walking in this direction, hoping that a car would come by soon, but I accidentally left my purse behind. I walked back to go get it while you remained here. We can't exactly get more gas without money, can we?"

Gold shook his head as he answered, "No, I suppose we can't. Did you get what you needed?"

"Yes, of course," she responded gently as the crippled man and his beautiful wife started walking down the road once more, away from where Storybrooke stood shielded from them both, while the real Belle remained concealed within the magical border, watching as the man she had loved walked away for good with a copy of the real woman he believed her to be. "Let's keep going then. Surely a car will come along in no time."

"It's for the best, Miss. French," Regina said sincerely as she stepped up beside her and watched them with her. "He should remain happy, so long as the magic we just created holds."

Belle nodded and then replied, "I hope so. The spell, I mean. I hope it does hold. Because if not, we're all in for a reckoning."

Regina answered, "I know what you mean."


	16. Chapter 16

At the Beginning With You

Chapter Sixteen

After the heroes' battle against the Enchantress, Blackbeard, and his band of pirates was over, everyone slowly made their return to the castle where the wounded could be tended to, where the villains would be punished for their crimes, and where the dead would be given a proper burial after a funeral and ceremony could be given in their honor. The next few days were dark within the kingdom of Arendelle as its people mourned for the loss of their warriors, but Elsa assured her people that the guards who had been lost had died honorably fighting for a noble cause, in saving a man who risked his life for their Queen, Princess, and Prince while they had been trapped within another realm.

Snow, Charming, and the rest from Storybrooke all attended the ceremony, everyone that is except for Emma, not out of disrespect for these men's sacrifices, but because Killian needed her more as the royal physician treated the severely ill man to the best of her abilities, all the while Emma refused to leave his side. The woman assured the Savior that her husband should be fine so long as he's given the proper time to recover, but Emma knew that Hook was no longer suffering from any physical wounds or a simple fever, no matter how high it might be.

Nearly four days passed and the man she loved was no closer to waking, even through his anguish and the nightmares that plagued his body, until finally late into the fourth evening, he slowly began to stir. Somewhere deep within the fog of his mind, Killian could hear the woman he loved calling out to him and felt her tender embrace while she tried to coax him to wake, but when his eyes opened weakly, he became startled and afraid while he struggled to fight against her, backing away from her as far as he could against the bed on which he was lying on.

Emma swiftly pulled the damp cloth she was using to help bring down his fever away as she fought to steady and calm him while she said fearfully, "Shush… it's alright, Killian. I promise you, you're safe. It's me."

He lowered his head away from her in defeat as he asked brusquely, "Who are you? Why can't you… leave… me alone?"

"It's me," she answered sadly, knowing he was this distraught as he once again believed himself to be trapped within the Underworld and that she was simply another one of Hades' cruel mind tricks. "Killian, it's really me. The woman who truly loves you, your wife. You're alive and I'm right here."

"No, you're not… not real," he replied as he became too weak to continue to fight against her any longer, finally allowing her to get close to him. "Please… just leave…"

Emma laid her forehead gently against his as she raised her hands to both sides of his head and released her powers into him in hope of soothing his mind as she showed him memories of their adventures, memories of their love, of the kisses they've shared, and mostly the memories of the sacrifices he's made for her and those he loved to try to prove to him that he was indeed alive and that she was real. Her efforts seemed to be working as Killian slowly calmed and when Emma pulled back, she looked into his eyes while tears began to form as he finally whispered her name upon recognition, then turned away from her out of shame and closed his eyes.

She took his one hand in her own and held it up to her cheek while she too began to cry, then placed her other hand over his cheek to get him to look at her again as she spoke again softly, "I found you. I'm just sorry it took us so long. You have no reason to feel ashamed, Killian. I don't know what you remember, but if you remember the things she forced you to do under the spell she put you under…"

He quietly interrupted, "I was worried when you fell... I feared… But then I was still alive and knew you must… must have been too. Your friend, August. Did I…?"

"August is just fine," Emma responded assuredly as he confirmed that he did remember everything. "You didn't hurt him, except maybe his pride a little. And I promise you, I'm just fine too. We all are. The Enchantress is dead and both Blackbeard and that woman's servant have been imprisoned here inside the castle, where Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff live. They will never again be a threat to you."

"Aye, but they won't be the only threat," he answered worryingly.

She looked at him in confusion as she asked, "What are you talking about? No one will remember the rumors about you having been to the Underworld and back. I made sure of that by requesting the rock trolls' help, as they had done when they had erased all memories of Ingrid from this kingdom, as well as all neighboring kingdoms."

Hook looked at his wife sadly as he replied, "It was because of Hades that the Enchantress even knew of my existence, Swan. He wants me back… and he won't st… stop, even if he must kill you and all you love to do it."

"I won't let him have you, Killian," Emma responded firmly and then leaned in to kiss him tenderly. "Everyone's going to be alright. You and me, we are going to live a long and happy life together."

"I do wish that, more than anything," he answered despondently, then slowly fell asleep again with the woman he loved within his arms, her head lying against his chest as he held her close.

The next morning, though Killian was still weak, everyone was gathered together at the port where the Jolly Roger was tied up safe and sound, thanks to Elsa and David getting the ship's whereabouts from Blackbeard, as those from another realm were ready to leave Arendelle and return to their home in Storybrooke. Emma stood at her husband's side as she helped him walk, while her parents remained close by in case he stumbled. Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, and even Sven all came out to say farewell to their friends once again.

Elsa was the first to say something as she reached out to pull Mary Margaret and David into a hug and sated, "I am truly going to miss you, all of you."

Mary Margaret smiled as she replied, "We'll miss you too. It really was good to see you again, even with the circumstances being as they were."

"It's just good that everything worked out for the best," Anna responded as she also leaned in to hug her friends, while her sister moved to stand in front of Emma and Hook.

"I'm happy that you're doing better, Hook," the Queen said sincerely as she reached out and placed her hand over the hook that replaced his own, as he was using his only good hand to keep his hold on Emma. "And I am sorry for everything you've been through since you've come here to Arendelle."

Killian nodded his head as if to bow before her, then he answered quietly, "I assure you, I do not hold these experiences against your kind hospitality and the beauty that is your home. I thank you all for what you've done, for me and especially for Emma and her family. I'm also truly sorry for your loss."

As she too said her own goodbyes, Anna replied, "Our soldiers' deaths are certainly not your fault. They were performing their duty. We defend each other as well as our friends, even if they are from another world. There's nothing more honorable than that."

"Anna's right," Kristoff responded as he pulled David in for a hug, then reached out to shake Mary Margaret's and Emma's hands, as well as the pirate's hook as Elsa had. "Besides, we won. That's what's important."

"I hope you all return one day," Elsa continued. "And Emma, it is wonderful to see you again, both you and Hook. Take care of each other."

David and Mary Margaret reached out to take hold of Hook to help keep him steady as Emma left his side for a moment so that she could pull Elsa in for a hug, as well as Anna and finally Kristoff, then waved over at the talking snowman as she smiled down at him. Once all goodbyes were said, and everyone from Storybrooke were onboard Killian's ship, the royals waved to everyone as the Jolly Roger left the port until she disappeared through the portal that opened for them after a bean was tossed into the sea so they could finally return to their own home.

Days later…

Archie was sitting at his desk inside his office late one night as he finished up writing some notes before going home for the evening, until a knock sounded at his door, startling him and interrupting his train of thought. Pongo, who was laying in the corner of the room in his bed, rose up nervously in awareness, but did not get up completely while he assessed whether or not the person behind the door might be a threat. At the sound of the second knock, Archie rose and cautiously opened it, finding Hook standing before him.

The pirate looked at the psychiatrist nervously as he saw the brief glimpse of worry on the man's face and quickly spoke up saying, "Forgive my intrusion, Dr. Hopper, especially at this late hour."

Archie immediately let him inside as he answered, "No, no, not at all, Hook… I'm sorry, Killian. Please, come on in. It's okay, Pongo. You can relax again. He's a friend. And you're perfectly welcome here. I'm sorry, I just wasn't expecting anyone more tonight. Is everything all right?"

"I was hoping we could talk," Killian replied quietly, though it was clear to the doctor that he really wasn't sure where to begin whatever it was bothering him.

"You can talk to me about anything," Jiminy responded as he motioned for his friend to have a seat on the couch. "What's troubling you? Is this about what happened to you in Arendelle?"

Killian looked at the man sitting in the chair before him as he answered, "I just wanted to thank you for coming with the others to help me and Emma. After our rough beginning… I didn't ever expect you would risk your life for me."

Archie smiled and replied, "You're not that man anymore. I knew that a long time ago. I went to Arendelle with Mary Margaret and David, and the dwarfs, because it was the right thing to do, and because despite what you might think, I do consider you a friend."

"And that's what makes this so much harder," Hook responded almost angrily as he stood again while he ran his hand through his hair and turned away.

"I don't understand," the doctor said as he continued to look at Hook even though his back remained to him. "Why have you really come here tonight? What is so hard?"

Killian finally turned back to him as he responded, "Nothing. Never mind that I came here tonight, doctor. I told Emma I was going out for a walk down by the sea to try to clear my head. I've been gone too long. I should really get back. Forgive me for intruding."

As the pirate walked to the door in attempt to leave again, Archie stood and grabbed his arm to try to stop him, although he immediately regretted his actions as Killian winced as if in pain and quickly backed away, momentarily showing fear in his eyes, and when he appeared to calm down, Jiminy stated, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…"

"I'm fine," Hook interrupted curtly.

"No you're not," the doctor retorted in disagreement. "Does Emma know how much you're hurting? I mean, really hurting? Have you spoken with her at all about any of what you've been through?"

Killian shook his head and then answered quietly, "She knows enough. I won't allow my burdens become hers as well."

Archie moved around to stand in front of him again as he replied, "That is part of being married. I know that she will never think of you as a burden. Emma loves you and wants what's best for you."

"She already has far too much to deal with," the Captain responded as he finally turned back to the man trying to help him. "She is the Savior. She's always taking care of others before herself, putting everyone else's needs above her own. I can't let her do the same for me."

"Don't you think that that's up to her to make that decision?" Archie asked and waited for him to continue.

Killian spoke up again saying, "I can't do that. She would never understand. She'd only keep trying to tell me that I'm a fool for feeling the way that I do. I don't even bloody hell understand what's wrong with me."

Dr. Hopper took a seat again, not bothering to motion for the man still standing to do the same as he knew it would be pointless to do so, then with sincerity he finally answered, "You're having nightmares again and you can't sleep, so to avoid disturbing Emma, who knows more than you think she does, you leave in the middle of the night to go out on your ship to remain alone. But what's worse, is that you are having trouble understanding why it is that you deserve to be alive again, after all of the terrible things you feel you've done."

"I did do all those things, Cricket," Hook replied curtly as he turned and glared down at the doctor he knew was really only trying to help him. "You of all people know firsthand of the kind of man I was."

"You just said it yourself," Archie responded. "That was the kind of man you were, but you have long since redeemed yourself and have proven to the people who love you, to this entire town, that you deserve a second chance at life. You've been focusing so much on all of the bad, the evils you committed throughout your life…"

Killian interrupted, "That's because it's been a really long life. I spent centuries searching for a way to get my revenge on the Crocodile, hurting innocent people such as yourself to get what it was I wanted. But what's worse, a part of me believed that I had finally begun to change for the better, only to have failed, as I let everyone down again. I fell back into the darkness because I was too weak to fight it. I hurt Emma and her family, and friends, said and did horrible things."

Dr. Hopper looked at him as he said firmly, "The only thing that we all care about, is that in the end you did fight against the darkness and you gave your life, knowing that you would be sent into the Underworld, to save us all. Surely Emma and her parents have told you this."

"Going to the Underworld is no less than I deserved," Hook answered in frustration. "I finally died and wound up in the place where I belonged, until I was pulled right back, with the constant reminders of the terrible things I've done. The Underworld or Storybrooke, it makes no difference any longer, but at least there, people saw me for who I really am."

"Are you so afraid to believe that there is good in you?" Archie asked sadly. "Henry told me that when you pleaded with Emma to kill you, so that he and her family and friends would be saved, you said you wanted to die a hero."

Killian scoffed and suddenly slammed his hook into the wall in front of him, creating a hole right through the plaster as she cried out angrily, "I only said that to convince her killing me was the right thing to do! I didn't actually believe it. People keep calling me that, a hero, but it's not bloody true. Emma's a hero, her boy and her parents are heroes. So aren't the wooden man child, the bloody Evil Queen, and Robin Hood. Not me!"

The doctor waited several minutes so that his friend could calm down and when Hook collapsed back down to the couch again, he continued as he asked again, "What is it that has you so afraid to admit that you are a good man, a better man than you realize, and not the same man you were back when we first met?"

"Because... I wasn't just reminded of the villain that I am when I was down there," Hook replied worryingly. "Surely Emma explained this to you. She said the two of you had spoken when we were in Arendelle."

"We did, but not about anything you might have shared with her that was meant to remain between the two of you," he responded honestly. "Please, don't stop talking now. I want to help you, Killian."

The pirate captain kept his eyes on the floor in front of him as he complied, "I felt it... every vile deed I've ever done in all my years... I felt their pain, their fear, their hate for me because of the terrible things I did to them… I felt it all. That was my biggest punishment while trapped in that hell, and I deserved it, but the worst of it all, is that all of you keep risking your lives to protect me, a man who doesn't deserve this second chance at life."

Archie nodded in understanding as he answered gently, "Your guilt is tearing you apart inside. Believe me, I know how you feel. I've done things in my life that troubles me too. We all have. Think about how Regina must feel, or even Emma. Despite your wishes, she turned you into a Dark One and that choice, nearly cost her, her family and friends. And it did cost her the man she loves, even though it was only temporary. She's truly afraid for you. She wants you to forgive yourself for everything that we've all already forgiven you for. Because she wants you to be happy."

"How do I do that?" Hook asked despondently. "How am I supposed to live, with the constant reminders that I see every day because these damn scars across my body will never let me forget?"

"You just live, one day at a time and try not to look at the long life ahead of you as a burden to those you love and care about," the man replied with confidence. "Try to remember all of the good you've done, and think of all of the good things in life that you and Emma both have to look forward to. Let the people you love in and allow them to help you though your pain and fears so that you don't have to go through this all alone. And one last thing, you will always have me here to talk to about anything, at any time, because I'm your friend. I may be a cricket, but that's what makes me an excellent listener."

Killian reached out to shake Archie's hand as he nodded and then responded, "Thank you, Dr. Hopper. And I do apologize for what I've done to your wall. I promise to pay for the repairs."

The psychiatrist smiled as he spoke again saying, "No apology's necessary. I've been wanting to remodel my office for years now, but never got around to it. At least now I finally have an excuse. And please, call me Archie. My friends always do."

Three months later...

Emma and Killian were slowly walking along the streets of Verona, Italy just as the sun had finished setting, having finally taken the Jolly Roger across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe for their honeymoon at last, Verona being the couple's first real stop of their journey. After they arrived, they found a beautiful restaurant for a quiet, romantic dinner. While they waited for their food, it was then Emma noticed where it was they were as she looked up at the old brick home across from where they sat, where there was a balcony overlooking the street below, and then looked along the wall beneath it where women were writing letters and placing them within the nooks between the bricks and stone.

"Do you recognize this place, love?" Killian asked as he tried to figure out what had his wife so in awe.

"Yes, and it's even more beautiful than I even imagined," she answered, then looked back at the man she loved upon realizing why he didn't understand what she meant. "This is where _Romeo and Juliet_ took place, the world's greatest love story that's ever been written. That balcony, is where Romeo declared his love for Juliet, or supposedly, if the story were actually real. Truthfully, after finding out that all of the fairytales I thought I knew were true, mostly true, I wouldn't be surprised if _Romeo and Juliet_ was too."

Hook smiled as he took her hand within his own, while she looked into his eyes as she also held onto his fake hand, having replaced his hook with it to avoid scaring those around them, then he replied, "I do love the sound of this, Romeo and Juliet. Tell me about this great love story."

Emma thought for a moment and then responded, "Well, it's about two young people in love after having met quite by chance. Sadly, their families both hated one another, nearly making it impossible for them to be together. Eventually, they could no longer live as they were so Juliet pretended to kill herself with a drug that made her appear as though she was dead so that she could leave her family behind to be with Romeo. Unfortunately, word didn't get to Romeo in time as to what she had done and when he found her, believing she was dead, he purchased poison and drank it, then he died. When she awoke from her state and found him to truly be dead, she picks up his dagger and kills herself for real this time."

"And you call this romantic?" the pirate asked skeptically. "If they had simply planned to fake their deaths for their families together, then they could have lived and been together."

"That isn't the point of this story," she retorted in Shakespeare's defense. "The point is, that they loved each other so much, they were willing to give their lives so that they could be together again in the next life. In a way, their love story is much like ours, including its dark tragedy. Except you were the only one who died, twice."

Emma quickly looked away, as Killian knew that it still hurt her to talk about, as well as himself, so he quickly changed the subject as he asked, "And that wall beneath the balcony, what is the significance of all these woman placing notes inside of it?"

She observed a woman crying over whatever was in the letter she had just written as she put it inside and walked away, then the blonde answered, "It's a place where women come from all around the world to write letters to Juliet, to share their own love stories. They're not actually meant to be read, but… it's the romance of it that makes doing so, so powerful."

"Well then, Swan," Killian replied sincerely as he pulled out a quill and a piece of paper from his leather jacket pocket for her to write on. "Perhaps you should write one of your own."

"Our story's long," Emma responded with a smile and then leaned in close to the man she loved with her whole heart, as she knew he felt for her, for a kiss. "But if you ask me, it's far more romantic than even that of Romeo and Juliet."

The End


	17. Thank You

Thank you to all of those who have read and have written reviews for my story! They are much appreciated. I'm honored to have you all for fans and I hope to hear from you all again in the future, should you choose to read and enjoy more of my work. Best of wishes to you all!

Sincerely,

Genevieve Kelly


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